Window Of Opportunity
by Artemisdesari
Summary: Jareth gives Sarah and gift and eight years later an accident prompts her to do the one thing she never thought she would. Jareth takes her but is still angry, what will he do and how will Sarah cope with her new position? Rated to be safe. Now COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

_Disclaimer: I do not own the Lanyrinth or any of the original characters. Any that are not from the film are my own and can only be used with my permission. I own a Jareth doll (he arrives in May) and a bowl of soup._

_Don't hate me. I am still working on Darkness, but this one has been bugging me for a while so I thought I would share it with you. Again I ask that you R&R, it takes two seconds (unless you use my computer and then it takes about ten minutes because it's rubbish)_

Prologue:

The music was loud, her friends all laughed with her. She was happier than she had ever been in her fifteen years of life. She had won, she had defeated the Goblin King and his minions. Toby was free and she had seen her faults, she knew who she was, she knew what she was and she was no longer alone.

Later as she cleaned up the mess that her friends had left her with, she looked out of her bedroom window. The owl was there, watching and waiting, it took only a seconds thought before she pulled it open and took a reluctant step back to grant him access. It was the last thing that she had ever wanted to do but she did not want to seem like a poor winner, and after all he had taken the time to come and see her, the last thing that he would want to do would be to gloat at her obvious loss. True enough, when he materialised in his Fae form before her, he did not gloat, and his eyes were filled with a kind of deep sorrow.

"Sarah," the longing in his voice was noticeable and for just a second, she harbored the thought that his words had been true. "Congratulations." The word seemed to come from between clenched teeth, maybe he _was_ being a poor loser.

"Why are you here?" She kept her voice quiet, not wishing to make anymore noise and run the further risk of waking up her father and Karen. Explaining her friends would have been hard enough, explaining the presence of the Goblin King and his disturbingly tight trousers would have been another problem entirely.

"I am come to bestow upon you a gift." His wrist twisted and a crystal appeared there.

"My dreams?" She mocked and saw his face twist in anger, it was not a pleasant look, even on the highly attractive Jareth.

"For defeating me. I am sworn to come whenever you should call upon me, to bow down to your petty whims and wishes." He held the crystal to her as he spoke, his tone full of rage and self mockery. She took the crystal, sensing that not to would be to offer some serious insult to the already angry king. In a flash of lightning and a role of thunder he was gone.

"Show off," she muttered as she shoved the orb into a draw. "Believe me, I'm as likely to call on _you_ as you are to want me to."

_This _is_ going somewhere, I promise. Unlike Darkness. I'll probably only update this once a week. Anyway, R&R, let me know what you think, or tell me to shut up._

_Artemis_


	2. Chapter 2

_Thank you to my reviewers Faery Dreamer, Anna McNarin, Kalalia and notwritten. Chapter two for you and I promise that it will all eventually make perfect sense. Please R&R_

Eight Years Later:

Accidents seem to happen for the silliest of reasons. Not looking where you are going, falling off roller skates and others in the same sort of league. No one ever considers _birds_ as being capable of causing anything major in the accident stakes. Unfortunately, people are wrong.

Before we go any further, we need to be clear on one fairly large issue, one that many people fail to understand. Aircraft fly mostly with the help of some fairly powerful turbine engines. These suck in the air and use it to help create the lift that keeps the plane in the air. Now, these engines are not just capable of sucking air, they can suck in much heavier things too and one of these, is birds. Logically speaking, when something solid hits something at speed, one or other of them is going to break, sometimes both break. In the case of the bird versus the plane engine, the bird is _always_ going to lose the fight, however, the engine does not always walk away unscathed either. The impact can create hairline fractures which will expand under pressure and eventually the engine will just falter, or in worst case scenarios, explode. Fortunately for Sarah, the engine did not explode, but it did not continue to work either.

The unfortunate bird was a tiny robin that got sucked into the engine on take off. No one noticed, the bird was too small to be noticed by pilots or passengers, but it caused the necessary damage to the plane. The crack was tiny, had the engine not been operating there would not have been a problem, unfortunately, the rapid revolutions of the engine caused the damage to escalate, a small part flew off and it jammed the engine. The pilot made a brief announcement about engine trouble but told them not to worry. Sarah sat silent and waited, not able to worry past the deep hurt in the pit of her stomach. The plane shuddered and for a moment she thought it was turbulence, then she saw a burst of flame on the wing and she leant to look out of her window. The engine was on fire and she could see it shuddering until finally the flames and the vibrations ripped it away. The plane jolted again and she realised that the pieces of the engine had hit the tail section of the plane. Alarms began to sound and the emergency oxygen masks dropped as she began to decide that she did not want to die. She pulled a mask over her face but she could tell by the expression of the stewardess next to her that this was not something that they were going to get out of alive.

The plane simply began to fall, rapidly, and she could see the ground coming up to meet her and she began to pray, something she had not done since she was a child. It took her a moment to realise that it was not going to do her any good. She did the one thing she never thought that she would do.

"Jareth," she whispered the Goblin Kings name. Nothing happened and she sat for a moment, feeling herself begin to hyperventilate.

"I wish the Goblin King would come and take me away, right now!" She shouted it into the mask as the ground met the nose of the plane. Everything went black.

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Jareth heard the call as he was eating his evening meal. He glanced at his companion and sent a silent thank you to whatever passing deity or demi-god that had decided to give him this small reprieve. He rose and transported himself from the room without speaking, aware that he was being rude an not caring. He was at the site of the call within moments and was surprised when he was swept off his feet by pure g-force. He scowled and pulled his way to the person who had called, surprised when he saw Sarah. He felt the nose of the plane impact the ground and grabbed her, transporting them both out and to the castle infirmary.

"Tell me when she wakes up," he ordered and left.

_Well there you go, next chapter up and I promise that I'll try and post again in the nest week_

_Artemis_


	3. Chapter 3

_I'm awar that the last chapter was quite sort, hopefully this one will be a little longer. with this fic, chapter lengths are going to vary wildly, it's just the way the story seems to unfold. I didn't design it that way, it's just that the chapters end where it makes the most sense for them too. _

_Again, thanks to rose217, Anna McNarin and Kalalia for your reviews, again I ask to those who read and don't review that you do._

Chapter Three: Jareth.

The instant he had placed Sarah in the care of the healers, Jareth went straight to his personal rooms. For just a second before he had taken her he had debated leaving her to her death, but at the point of indecision, he had felt magic, far more ancient and powerful than anything he possessed, rip through him. He had to take her, but he did not have to like it. He had been obligated to take her by both the words of the wish and the gift he had bestowed upon her after the last time they had met. He was not, however, obliged to treat her like an honoured guest, she would expect that. The castle, on the other hand, was always in need of new staff, and to have a new member who was obligated to stay on the basis of her wish, would be ideal. Especially considering the circumstances under which most of the staff left. He summoned a crystal and spoke into it.

"Torel, I need to see you in my chambers, immediately." He let the crystal drop and it dissipated before it hit the floor. He felt a tremor run through the castle, then a scream of rage and a cry of pain just on the fringes of his awareness. Sometimes it was a curse being able to sense things that went on within his domain.

"You wished to see me, My King?" A male voice muttered from the door, he turned and looked at his steward and most trusted friend and advisor.

"The disturbance?" He asked as he sat at his desk, gesturing for his friend to take the seat opposite.

"Another of the maids just resigned."

"Damn! It is fast getting to the point where we will be unable to replace them. Would that it was a year from now." He pinched the bridge of his nose, his face weary.

"One year, My King, it is only a year. You and the Labyrinth have so far endured two hundred and ninety nine years, one more is not that long."

"No, but the humans have a wonderful saying, about a straw that breaks the camels back. This may well be my straw."

"Your Majesty?" The man frowned, confused.

"Sarah is here. She wished herself away." He rubbed at his face, tired. "She was injured. When she wakes up, when she is healed, I want you to take her to the servants quarters and find her a room and suitable clothes. Tell me when she is ready and I will tell her of her new position within my realm."

"You will not be sending her back then?"

"No, she wished herself here. I see no reason to send her back." He stood and walked over to the window.

"But your feelings for the girl..."

"She is hardly a 'girl' anymore, Torel, and my 'feelings' are that I should have left her where she was! My '_feelings_' are that I should kill her _myself_!" He lashed out at the wall with his fist and his magic. A spray of dust splashed around them and settled. To his credit, Torel did not flinch, though his face did reflect his concern for his king. Jareth glared at him from across the room. "After what she did to me. After what she did to my kingdom. She _rejected_ me!"

"Yes she did. Yet you are hardly in a position to make good on that offer. May I speak freely, Your Majesty?"

"Always."

"She was little more than a child, just as you were three hundred years ago. Perhaps she feared what you offered."

"She _rejected_ me, Torel. She chose a screaming baby over _me_! I cannot just forgive that!" His usual calm was gone and his hair flew about him in a magical rage. "Leave, tell me when she awakes." Torel bowed. "Oh, and make sure as few people as possible know that she is here. Make sure as few people as possible know who she really is." The steward bowed and left in silence.

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Sarah awoke in a strange room. All around her people were moving around, talking and giving orders. She struggled to sit up, feeling a shoot of pain in her right hand. She hissed with the pain and a man turned. She could see his pointed ears, he was an elf. He touched her arm, frowned and the pain vanished.

"Fetch the Lord Steward," he ordered one of his companions. She nodded and left. Within moments she had returned with another man in tow. He spoke quietly to the healer and then came over to the bed.

"Sarah," he nodded in greeting. She looked up at him, her green eyes questioning. "I am Torel, the castle steward and king's advisor. If you would come with me, I will take you to your rooms and find you more suitable clothing to wear."

"Suitable clothing?" She asked as she followed the Fae down the stone corridor. He glanced back at her then turned a corner abruptly.

"Keep up. Yes, the king wishes to see you in an hour. He wants you settled and dressed appropriately before then." He gestured to her suit. "Mens clothes are not appropriate for your position, Sarah." She trotted to keep up with him, saving her snide reply until later, needing her breath to keep her going. They went some way down the dimly lit corridor until they reached a door. Torel pulled a key from his robe and placed it in the lock, opening the door before handing it to Sarah.

"Keep that safe, you will need it." She nodded and put the chain it was attached to around her neck.

The room had two small beds in it, each with a small chest at the foot of the bed, there was a table between the two and each end had a candle on it. There was a small window, through which moonlight glittered. The final thing to catch Sarah's attention was a plain, grey dress. She looked at Torel and her expression spoke volumes.

"I'm supposed to wear that?" She demanded. Torel nodded and was subjected to a long tirade about how pointless it was, how the dress probably would not fit her anyway and that neither he nor Jareth had any right to dictate what she wore. He listened patiently until she was finished, then walked out of the room.

"I will be back to take you to the King's study in ten minutes. If you are not ready you will go as you are." He closed the door behind him and so missed the candle that Sarah threw in his direction, with a small scream.

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Sarah entered Jareth's personal study, wearing the grey dress and it made her look very demure. Jareth knew that it was a misleading picture, even without his prior knowledge of her. His suspicions were confirmed when she began shouting the moment Torel had closed the door.

"What the hell is this?" She demanded.

"Is what, Sarah?" He asked with a surprising level of calm. "Have I not done as you asked?"

"A dress? A shared room?" She had noticed signs that the room was already occupied when she was changing.

"Fitting your new station, yes," he was taking great deal of pleasure in drawing out telling her the glorious truth.

"New station? What new station? Jareth, what the hell are you talking about?" Her voice raised an octave.

"You will address me as 'Your Majesty', not by my given name," he ordered with a chill smile. He took a great deal of pleasure in seeing her expression turn from one of anger to seething rage.

"Who the hell are you to give me orders?"

"Your _king_, Sarah. You wished yourself to me and now I can do with you as I see fit." Something in his expression made her take a step back from him and he felt pleasure rush through him. "You are now a member of the palace staff, I will leave it to Torel and Clara to assign your duties. You will address me with the respect and reverence deserving of me as your king."

"You _what_? A servant? What right have you got to turn me into a servant?" She demanded.

"By all _rights_ I should simply kill you where you stand. After what you did to my kingdom, after what you did to my people? I should have left you to die! But I am a generous man, Sarah, and I have decided to give you this chance. Rest assured, however, that if you cross me, I will not be so lenient. Am I clear?" She stared up at him, comprehension slowly filling her brilliant green eyes. "_Am _I _clear_?" He demanded once again, his voice now a low growl.

"Yes, Your _Majesty,_" There was a mocking note in her voice and she sketched a quick, clumsy curtsey, before turning and trying to leave. The door would not open and she rattled the knob before turning to glare at him.

"You have not been dismissed yet, Sarah. You should know better." He waved his hand negligently. "You may go." The door opened and she turned. "Oh, and, Sarah," she looked back at him. "Work on your curtsey, it was altogether too clumsy. As I recall you have more grace than that." She slammed the door closed behind her and heard his mocking laugh through the thick wood. She muttered to herself as she walked away, beginning the difficult task of finding her way back to her room and meeting her new room mate.

_There we go, it's a little longer for you, but still basically short. I've deliberately left some things cryptic, they will make sense given time, I promise you and I'll update as soon as I can._

_Artemis_


	4. Chapter 4

_Wow, I can't believe the reponse this story is getting. My thanks to Solea, Faeries Midwife, oh-you-pretty-things, notwritten, Anna McNarin and Xaviere Jade. My big thanks to Iria-Lonley for your well thought out reviews, they've been very helpful._

_This chapter was written during a bout of extreme insomnia, 3 o'clock in the morning with sleep nowhere in sight, so it's a little weird, I just can't find a way to change it that I'm hapy with, so I'm sticking with me first draft, this is what sleep deprivation does to me. I apologise in advance if it is a little disjointed._

Chapter Four: Nadine.

Nadine was not an elf, she was not a goblin, she was not a fairy. Nadine was a child who had been wished away and raised by a goblin family. She worked in the castle because it was the job she was best suited for. She worked alongside fairies, elves, dwarves and goblins, many of her friends were among those creatures, yet she was very aware that she was not one of them. She was very aware that she was one of the taken, those that the Goblin King took and allowed to be raised among his people. She was also aware that there were those among Fae nobility who did not like the Taken, who were not comfortable with their loyalty to the Goblin King and the Goblin King alone. Nadine was not bothered by these opinions. She merely watched and waited, happy to do both in the service of her King.

She was surprised to return to her room that night to find another woman there. After so long alone, she had become accustomed to her own space and her initial reaction was one of anger.

"Who are you?" She demanded, the woman sat on the bed looked up at her and se could see the dried stains of tears on her cheeks.

"I'm Sarah," she replied, standing. "I'm sorry, I wasn't sure where I should go or what I should do. Jar... I mean, the King, just brought me here and I'm not sure where I stand."

"Aren't you a little old to have been wished away?" Nadine asked as gently as she could. Sarah's head came up and she saw a flash of fire there that was quickly squashed.

"I wished myself away."

"Why would you do that?" It was hard to keep the scorn from her voice but somehow she managed it.

"I was going to die. I thought being here would be better. I never dreamed he would turn me into a servant." Her voice was dreamy and Nadine knew that she would be trouble.

"'Turn you into a servant'?" She questioned. "Did you really think that when he took you away he was going to let you live in the lap of luxury? That he would have you waited on hand and foot? Goddess, you're not one of those that actually believed he would marry you?" She asked incredulously. Sarah blushed a little, though she knew that the thought had only entered her head when she had been a child.

"No, I just... I don't know what I expected. I'm sorry." Nadine could see that things had been hard for this young woman. She carried pain around her like a cloak, raw and open. She put a gentle arm around her shoulder and lead her back over to the bed, sitting her down gently and holding her as tears began to stream down her cheeks.

"Tell me what happened," she requested gently and Sarah launched into the whole story, right from the beginning. Nadine listened in quiet amazement as she spoke between her sobs. When the story was over she offered some quiet advice.

"Tell this to no one, Sarah, no other must know. It would be very dangerous for you, and for them. Promise me, please?"

"I don't understand," she hiccoughed.

"Just promise me. You are _not_ the champion of the Labyrinth, you are just another of the Taken. Do not try to understand, please just trust me."

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Sarah followed Nadine down to the kitchen the next morning for breakfast. Torel was already waiting for her and lead her away from the kitchen as soon as she had finished eating. He was silent and she decided that he must have heard her argument with Jareth the night before.

"Where are we going?" She asked apprehensively, worried that he might be taking her to see an angry Jareth. He smiled at her.

"To see Clara, she will assign you your duties." He readied himself for a tirade but none came.

"Is he really serious about this?"

"Yes, Sarah. Did you really think he would not be?" He allowed himself a small smile, completely convinced of her continued naivete towards the kings intentions. "Did you really think that his anger would dissipate after one, brief, meeting with you?" He saw her blush and hid his grin behind a hand, careful to disguise it as a cough. They walked in silence for a little longer and finally they stopped at a door that had been painted green and Torel knocked.

"Come!" A female voice called and he pushed the door open, allowing Sarah to pass before closing it behind them. Sarah stood before a desk, behind which sat a tiny, goblin, woman, her face wizened and lined. She wore a dress of blue so deep that it was almost black, with a cap of the same colour over her wispy, thin, grey hair. Her eyes were pale, but they sparkled with mirth. "Ah," she pushed herself off her chair, using a stick of gnarled wood to walk over to Sarah. "You would be the One. She whom the king curses with such heat. Your fire matches his," she walked around the young woman, looking her over as she did so, muttering all the while, "your flames are as bright as his. Your strength is a match. Does he think to tame you?" She rapped at Sarah's legs with her stick and the woman cried out in shock. "You will not be tamed, child, oh no." She laughed, a strange, watery sound and went back to her seat. Torel's face had taken on a rather fixed expression and Sarah realised that he thought she was insane. "You may think me mad, Fae Torel, but I know all that you do not." She cackled again.

"We have come for Sarah's assignments." Torel cut in, evidently uncomfortable in the presence of the small goblin.

"Yes, yes, all in good time, Torel," she waved a hand, "leave us. I will send her too you when I am finished." Torel's face took on a somewhat offended expression but the tiny goblin continued to wave her hand and he left, touching Sarah's arm in a gesture of apology. She nodded and turned back to the goblin as he closed the door.

"That one is a fool," she nodded her head towards the closed door. "Your mind is more open, child. You will need to hold on to that here, things are not what they once seemed. Two hundred and ninety nine years have taken their toll upon our king. Support him, he will need you."

"I have _no_ intention of..."

"I did not say you had to do it _openly_, merely that you do not openly defy him. He _needs_ you. He will always need you."

"And that's why he did this. That's why he made me a servant instead of putting me somewhere that he could see me."

"For your protection, for his protection, for the safety of _all_!" The tiny creature's face was contorted into a picture of total fury, not unlike the king's had been the night before. "Sarah, you cannot continue to take this selfish view. Jareth has given you a position that will protect you."

"_Protect_ me from _who_?"

"From one whose notice you do not wish to encounter. You will be safer where he has put you. He has been truly generous, as I taught him to be. I would not have been so giving in his place. Repay him with the same generosity. Do not question him.

"I'm assigning you as a chamber maid. Vilae will show you the passages to take, you will not be seen, you will not be heard. You may go, no doubt Torel is just around the corner."

_Sorry, it is a little short, but all the same... You will be seeing more of Clara and learning about her relationship with Jareth soon and I promise the little mystery will be solved soon, Sarah will find out what everyone is hiding from her. This is supposed to be a time of growth for her. I know I'm guilty of the same in "Gifts" and "Darkness" but I find it hard to believe that she would have changed overnight after spending a few hours in the Labyrinth. She will not aways be a brat, give her time. Anyway, R&R, you know I love them (but no flames, if you don't like it don't read it)_

_Artemis_


	5. Chapter 5

_Here we go, chapter five. I'm sorry, it's a little short, my social life is still hectic so I can't write as much as I wuold like and I can't update as often either. This is more of a filler chapter than anything else, just to show how Sarah copes with her first day and a little bit of her thoughts._

Chapter Five : Vilae.

Sarah trotted after the tall Fae woman as they made their way through the servants passages. Vilae talked rapidly as she walked, pointing out turnings and doorways that Sarah would need to be aware of. They paused briefly next to one door, it had been painted bright pink at one time, but the paint was chipped and Sarah could see that someone had scratched something rude into the woodwork. Vilae scowled at the graffiti, but did not comment on it.

"Sarah, you must never go through this door. The occupant of this room will only allow certain people to be in there. If you are seen, you will be killed. Neither my husband, I, or the king have any desire to see that happen to you." Sarah scowled, confused, but nodded, Clara's words still fresh in her mind.

They continued along the hidden corridors but did not stop again until they reached a black painted door. This one was in better condition and was obviously well cared for. The paint was obviously fresh and it had evidently been cleaned because the tunnels around it were dirty but the door gleamed.

"This is the last room that you are to clean. Before you enter you need to check that the room is empty. You are not to be seen, you are not to be heard." Sarah looked at her, a strange expression crossing her face. "This is important. You have to be discrete, you don't talk about anything you see or anything you hear. You keep the rooms tidy, clean."

"Tidy and clean. Got it!" She threw a salute. Vilae shot her a strange look but ignored her. Sarah's blithe attitude told her that the young woman was gradually coming to accept the position she was now in, either that or she was trying to bury her feelings. Whatever the reasoning behind her reply, Vilae was simply pleased that it was not shouting or hysterics.

"How long have you and Torel been married?" She asked as they made their way to the laundry to pick up clean sheets for the seven rooms that had become Sarah's responsibility.

"Two hundred and eight years. We've got three children," it was hard to miss the pride in her voice. Vilae opened a door and they stepped into a steaming room.

All around them Sarah could hear women talking and laughing, young and old. Some were standing by the long, large tubs of water, vigorously scrubbing sheets and clothes. Others were stood by large, old fashioned mangles, wringing out water into a long deep channel cut into the stone floor, and still more women would take the wet items and hang them over long, fine, ropes stretched across the room. Outside, Sarah could see still more sheets flapping in the wind and she was glad that she had not been placed into this bustling hive of activity, needing the solitude of a chambermaids duties right now.

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The problem with being a chambermaid, Sarah decided the next day, was that it gave her too much time to think. As she cleaned the bedchambers of the assorted visiting Fae and the King, she had been able to think on the circumstances that had brought her here. She had thought about why she had wished herself away instead of taking the easy route out.

Then there was the nightmares. She had woken three times the night before, reliving the moments before Jareth had taken her. She had felt so afraid, so alone and hurt. This was not to say that she would not go home if she could, she just knew that Jareth was not ready to hear the request yet. He was obviously angry and she could not figure out why. Part of her nightmare had been that he had not come for her, for whatever reason. She had shot out of bed, sweating and tears pouring from her eyes, her pillow and blankets wet. Nadine had barely stirred, the girl slept like the dead. After the last dream, Sarah had stayed awake the rest of the night, eventually getting up and wandering around the castle, learning her way.

She had seen Jareth leaning against a wall, staring out of the window, she could only assume that he was looking at the Goblin city, and she had changed direction abruptly, certain he was still angry with her. She was also angry with him. He could have at least been a little more gentle with her when he had told her about her new job. She knew that she was being petty and selfish, just as Clara had told her, Jareth had, after all, saved her life, but she was feeling fragile at the moment and she had wanted to be understood, not taken and hidden away like she was hideous.

She shook herself out of her reverie and put the lids back onto a couple of pots of ladies cosmetics before making a discrete exit via the hidden passageways. Here lay her problem, she had time to think too much and that often lead to daydreams. Sarah liked to daydream, often living a better life in her head than she did outside of it. Now her daydreams were of the plane crash, it scared her.

This first day was to set the pattern of Sarah's life for the next month. She would change sheets and tidy rooms all day and at night she would wander the hallways, hiding from the Goblin King and his court, until she finally fell into her bed and slept, too exhausted to dream.

_I'm sorry it's so short (I know I already said that but I'll say it again), this was a part that was very hard to write because not much happens and I like things to happen, it was also necessary. I'll update again by friday, I hope, in the mean time, please R&R_

_Artemis_


	6. Chapter 6

_Ok, so I know that I said the next chapter would deal with the whole, Sarah going home issue, I forgot that I had seperated the next one chapter into two, mostly because they did not fit as one chapter, so I'm giving you both tonight, since they are a little short I may as well give you two chapters. Many thanks to my reviewers: Solea, yodeladyhoo, Iria-lonely, Kitsamuels, notwritten, SileaLove, Sailormoon1982 and HellionKyou. You're all amazing. Onwards! _

Chapter Six: One month later.

Sarah glanced around the room she had emerged into, it was tasteful, not overly opulent. The drapes were dark, the bed large and very comfortable looking, in fact she knew it was comfortable, she had crawled across it when changing the sheets on a number of occasions. The kings chambers were probably the nicest in the castle. Others that she had been in were gaudy, tasteless, almost like they had been decorated by a child, one with severe mental trauma.

She dumped the dirty sheets on the floor, idly noting that they smelt of magic and unknown, exotic spice. She was irritated to find that she liked the smell and muttered to herself about foolishness and childish dreams, then continued to unfold the fresh sheets, unaware that she was being watched.

He stood in the corner, his mismatched eyes dark with fury. He watched as she tucked the clean sheets around the heavy mattress, wisps of hair had escaped form under the bandana that she had tied her hair back with. She pushed it back with a mutter of irritation and continued to make the bed up. She was finished in a matter of moments and went back into the hidden passage. He relaxed against the wall, then turned his thoughts to the reason she had been in his rooms. Torel and Clara.

"_Torel_!" He bellowed into a crystal, even from a distance, he felt his stewards apprehension. "Clara." He called into another, heard the goblin mutter in reply and went to his study to wait for them.

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Jareth paced his study, irritated, he had seen Sarah in his chambers, of all places, changing sheets. Of all the things he could have seen her doing, she was changing his _sheets_. Though she had been here for a month, he had only seen her a few other times. If _he_ had seen her... A knock interrupted his thoughts and Torel entered, regarding his king with the same kind of apprehension that one might use when confronted with a poisonous snake. Since Sarah had arrived, Jareth had been in a dangerous mood, from the looks of things he had been tipped over the edge.

"Can you tell me, _exactly_, what Sarah is doing changing sheets?" He punctuated each word with a wave of his hand.

"We needed chamber maids. She was available. Clara was certain she would be suited to the assignment."

"I will speak with Clara later. I am _certain _that there are maids in the laundry or the kitchen who would be happy to transfer." His tone was scathing. "I _want_ her where she will not be seen. Put her into the kitchen, the laundry. Just put her somewhere, _anywhere_, where I cannot see her. Somewhere that I will _never_ see her!" He pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling a tension headache coming on. "Torel, _please_. Just sort something out anything, just make sure that I don't see her again."

"Of course, Your Majesty. She will be reassigned." Torel bowed and left. Jareth stood in silence before going to the window.

"You were listening, Clara." He said finally. The tiny goblin hobbled out of the shadows, leaning both hands heavily on her stick as she looked up at him, showing none of the normal reverence that the common goblin showed.

"I listened. I always listened, Young One. Do you really hate her so much?" Jareth looked down at her and moved away from the window and from the little creature, it was all the answer that she needed. She hobbled after him and whacked the back of his legs with the stick. "Foolish, Man Child! What did she to you? Hmmm?"

"Rejected me. Destroyed my castle. Do you really think that I would have taken the boy? That I would have kept him if she had taken my offer?"

"There are rules, Little King, you know as well as I."

"I know, Clara, but I could not have kept either of them, she was not old enough, she could not have coped with the guilt. Clara, what did I do?"

"You terrified her. You have no cause to hate her. I think she has more reason to hate you."

"I cannot forgive her, Clara."

"This is why you do not wish to see her? Idiocy."

_-Jareth!-_ A voice cut across them.

"What now?" He muttered.

"Go, King Child, deal with your real problems. Stop creating out of nothing. I shall talk to the child, move her until you stop sulking." She hobbled away muttering as his scowl drilled into the back of her head.

_I know it was a little short, but I have another offering for you after this one. R&R_

_Artemis_


	7. Chapter 7

_Second offering of the night. Again, it's short, but R&R anyway. Oh and I have one word for you all "Loopholes"_

Chapter Seven: Sarah.

Sarah's reassignment was greeted with mixed feelings. Some felt that it was appropriate for her to take a step down and be hidden, away from the eyes of the King and his spies. Those who knew her significance to the Labyrinth, knew that she had been reassigned at the King's request, those who did not, assumed that she had upset the King in some way. As it stood, Sarah was more upset at not being told the reason for her reassignment than the actual fact that she had been reassigned. She had been put in the laundry five days and was in the kitchen for two, having a day off once every three weeks. It was hard, but she got to spend more time with her new friends.

Her busy schedule kept her from thinking too much. It kept her from thinking about what her family must be going through, after the crash and her disappearance, she was worried. Her father was no longer a young man and he had a heart attack only a few months before she had vanished. A number of times she had tried to see Jareth, to ask him for some time Aboveground to see her family and say goodbye, she had been denied access to him each time.

"Child," Clara approached her from down the corridor. "Your king will see you now." The little goblin hobbled past her. "Come, come, he does not have all day to wait for you." She cackled mirthlessly and continued along. Sarah trotted to catch up with her, for such a tiny creature who needed a stick to walk, Clara certainly moved quickly.

When they reached the study door the goblin rapped with her stick, then nudged the door open, rejecting Sarah's offer of assistance.

"Thank you, Clara, you may leave." Jareth said from his desk, his voice soft. "You wanted to see me, Sarah?" He did not look up at her, continuing to read the report in his hand.

"I want to go home." She told him quietly, trying to keep it from sounding confrontational. His head shot up and he glared at her.

"Demands, Sarah? Did we not go over your new position when you came here?"

"I just want to tell my family that I'm alright," her green eyes were large and pleading. It was jot an unreasonable request by any stretch, but Jareth was still unwilling to grant her anything. Besides, in this instance his little gift did not apply, he had something to torment her with.

"Quite impossible," he said with a shake of his head and went back to reading the report, not bothering to hide his smirk.

"Why? Why impossible?" Her voice raised and he looked back at her, his eyes had and his face pulled into a fierce scowl.

"Because _I_ said it was. That is all the reason that you should need." Seeing that she would not be satisfied with that answer, he continued, moving to stand in front of her as he spoke.

"Your family already believe that you are dead. I even provided them with a body."

Sarah lashed out at him and all that could be heard in the office was the sound of her hand contacting with his cheek. He did not even flinch, just took her arm in a vice like grip and squeezed.

"The next time you do that will be your last," he growled, twisting her arm and making her cry out in pain. "Am I clear?" She clenched her teeth as he twisted harder, trying not to let the tears that stung, fall.

"Crystal," she hissed. "Please stop, you're hurting me. Your Majesty, please. " The tears fell, despite her efforts. "Jareth, _please_." The sound of his name brought him up sort and the angry red mist dissipated. He released her arm with a wave of disgust, aimed solely at himself. It took all of his self control not to fall at her feet and beg for forgiveness. Instead he walked away from her and went to the window, to look out at what his people had achieved in the last eight years. He found it relaxing to see how far forward they had come since the destruction of the city.

"Look what you did, Sarah," he beckoned her to the window. "Look at the trail of destruction you left behind." He gestured to a part of the city still visible from the window, a street that was nothing more than a pile of rubble. Goblins bustled around with shovels and wheel barrows full of stones. Others were mixing mortar and rebuilding the destroyed walls. "By defeating me you destroyed this castle and the city. You took the Goblins homes from them."

"The Labyrinth?" She asked, her voice hushed and her eyes haunted.

"The Labyrinth has been here since time has begun. It is more eternal even than me. It has been here since before my kind existed and will be here even after we are all extinct. Not even _you_ could destroy my Labyrinth." There was a slightly scathing note to his voice as he looked down at her.

"You rebuilt the castle first?"

"Naturally. You can fit more goblins into the castle than you can in a house. Those who do not have a home, live in the castle. You are no longer the plucky heroine, Sarah, to the majority of the goblins, you are the one who destroyed their homes, you would not be safe if they knew you were here." She stared in silence, looking now at the rebuilt homes of the goblin populace. They were beautiful, no longer the chaotic, mismatch of random styles and sizes. The houses were uniform, in streets, with decorated stone work and tiny little gardens. Goblins bustled about here, too, gardening, washing and arguing, their happy voices drifting to the window. "My people will never be the same again, Sarah, personally, I'm not entirely sure whether to thank you, or to kill you."

"Is that why you let my family believe I'm dead."

"No, it was simply more convenient than trying to magically erase your existence for the last twenty three years." He shrugged and she stared at him, shocked by his callousness. "Do not bother me with this matter again. Get on with your work and try to stay out of trouble and out of my way. My patience and generosity will only stretch so far."

_There you go "Loopholes". It's a bit of a cop out, but since every contract has them (and the same will apply here), and she can't tell her family she's alright if they have buried a body now can she? Cookies and hugs to the ones who spot the Serenity reference (not an exact quote but I admit that I did take it from there, so many thank yous to Joss Whedon for his brilliant writting) and again, R&R, I love them!_

_Artemis _


	8. Chapter 8

_Ah, an update, those mystical things that you all seem to like so much! So big thanks and hugs to my reviewers Yodeladyhoo, KitSamuels, notwritten, Anna McNarin and SilverShadow.23, you are all amazing! Thank you so much for taking the time to press that little button at the bottom of the page and tell me what you thought. Seriously though, it takes two seconds and I'll even take one word reviews so please please R&R. Now we solve a little mystery that I know has been irritating you all! Three hundred years are nearly over, but three hundred years of what?_

Chapter Eight: Marissa.

Sarah stood next to Nadine, up to her elbows in soapy water as she washed the sheets by hand. Nearly two weeks after she had been assigned to the laundry and she was still silently wishing for a washing machine. Another maid took the wet sheets from her and took them to a tub of cleaner water to rinse them. Sarah reached for the next dirty article and was surprised when her fingers came into contact with something soft. She pulled it out of the water and found that it was a nightshirt and that it was definitely _not_ one of Jareths. It had been cut for a woman and was a pale pink in colour, much softer than anything Sarah or one of her colleagues would ever have worn.

"Who's is this?" She asked, Nadine shot her a strange look.

"It belongs to the Queen, Sarah," she snickered. Sarah's return look was somewhat bemused.

"Queen?"

"Yes, the King's been married for nearly three hundred years. Didn't you know?"

Sarah fought hard to keep her emotions under control, even though she felt something inside her go cold. She suddenly realised that Jareth had lied to her when she had run the Labyrinth. If he had lied to her how many others had he done it too?

"Queen Marissa is evil. She treats us all like we are worth no more than dirt." Another maid muttered. One side of her face was marred by a large, shiny scar and she was missing an eye.

"Rumour has it that the king has never bedded her. If her can hold out for the next nine months he can divorce her." Nadine grinned. "Hopefully the next queen will be kinder."

"Do you really think her cruelty bothers him?" The scarred maid asked. "He can be just as bad. He didn't do anything about her treatment of me."

"Maybe he couldn't." Sarah suggested. "Perhaps he has to keep up appearances. If she's actually as bad as you say she is, maybe he wants others to see it, so he has a legitimate reason to divorce her."

"You're reading too much into it, Sarah" Nadine laughed. " he's probably just trying to concentrate on keeping it in his pants too much to be bothered." The group of women joined in with her laughter, the atmosphere now considerably lighter than it had been a matter of moments ago.

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It was nearly a week later when Marissa's personal maid, Toya, stumbled into the laundry, her hand held in front of her protectively and trembling. Tears of pain streamed down her cheeks and the smell of burning flesh flooded Sarah's nostrils. The hand that Toya held was already black and large, weeping, bloody blisters had already formed.

"Goddess!" Nadine breathed as Sarah tried to sooth the burning flesh. Not really sure what she was doing but willing to try anyway.

"Toya, what happened?" Sarah asked gently. The girl trembled violently and it was the scar faced maid who answered.

"_Marissa_ happened, Sarah." Her face was further twisted in anger. "This is what she does to those who displease her."

"Something should be done about that," Sarah muttered, "has no one ever spoken to Jareth about it?" There was a collective gasp at her use of the King's given name.

"Don't be a fool, Sarah. She is his wife. What does he care for the likes of us?" There was a rumble of assent and Sarah fell silent, deciding not to provoke them any further, but that she _was_ going to Jareth about this incident. There was no way that she was going to let it happen again, especially since she knew that another would be chosen to take Toya's place and that this latest incident would, in all likely hood, repeat itself.

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She did not wait for permission from Clara or Torel before she went in search of Jareth, she simply went. If she could not find him in his study she would try his chambers and the throne room. If all else failed she would try the Queen's chambers and see if the maids were right when they said that King and Queen had never consummated the marriage. She never made it as far as the Queen's chambers, Jareth found her as she wondered through the servants passages.

He was leant against the wall, his legs stretched in front of him so that they obstructed the way through the passage and prevented her from leaving. He grinned at her as she rounded a corner and ran straight into him, obliging him to catch her and ensure that she did not fall.

"I hear that you have been looking for me." He smirked. "Any reason or do you simply enjoy making my life difficult?"

"You know full well why I want to talk to you!" She hissed, careful not to speak too loudly, aware that any arguments would be heard by those in the next room.

"Enlighten me anyway, you'll get so much more pleasure from actually saying it." She ignored the dangerous note in his voice.

"Your _wife_! How can you just let her treat us the way she does?"

"Has she mistreated you?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow and folding his arms across his chest. Sarah shook her head. "Then why does her behaviour bother you so?" He knew that the question would irritate her and since he had last seen her, he had already begun to forgive her, a little. He was not as angry with her, though some days he could still cheerfully kill her.

"Because no one deserves to be treated that way! Toya may never be able to work again. Your wife completely destroyed her hand! Do you intend to do anything about it?"

The smirk had vanished from his face. Marissa had told him that she had merely held the girls hand in the fire for a matter of seconds. He turned to look at the wall, not wanting to let her see his confussion.

"How bad was it?" He asked, his voice barely audible.

"I'm no doctor, but I would be surprised if she ever uses it again. It was black, Jareth," he ignored her use of his name, "bleeding and I'm sure that I saw the bones in one of her fingers." At that he turned to look at her, his mismatched eyes wide with something like shock.

"I will talk to her," he muttered and vanished. Sarah muttered something rude under her breath and went in search of her bed.

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"Toya," he held his arm out to her and escorted her to the fire place before unwrapping the bandage that Sarah had wound around the hand. He hissed in sympathy as the terrified girl stared up at him.

"Your Majesty, I don't..."

"Hush, child, lets just say that you have a very persuasive friend." he twisted his wrist, creating a crystal that he moved slowly over the mangled hand, his face gentle as the orb glowed. "Tell me what happened." He ordered as he worked.

"I brought the Queen her breakfast. Toast just as she likes it, but there was no strawberry preserve, only peach so I brought her that. I'm so sorry, Your Majesty, I should have known better. What she did is my own fault."

"No, child, I highly doubt it is. Tell me."

"She was upset, um, Her Majesty took my hand and it seemed like she was going to stroke it, I was upset, crying, I thought she was going to comfort me. Instead she grabbed my arm and pushed my hand into the fire and held it there."

"For how long?" He kept his voice neutral, but inside he was seething.

"I don't know, it seemed like an eternity but maybe five minutes." He nodded as the crystal stopped glowing, then wrapped the hand in clean bandages.

"Keep that covered for a few days. On the third day remove the bandages and bathe your hand in salt water, wrap it for one more day and then leave the bandages off."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

_There you go, another chapter, a mystery solved and a little idea of why Jareth and the others have kept the existance of the Queen from Sarah, I know that you all wanted a confrontation with him about his wife, and believe me, that's coming, but not now, she had more important things on her mind at the time. Again, R&R I love them and I need them. Actually, I think they might be a little addictive!!_

_Artemis_


	9. Chapter 9

_Just a little chapter tonight, and I'll give you another on friday. Tonight we meet Marissa for the first time, then she'll sort of drop out of the story, she won't meet Sarah for a little while yet. Thanks to Nienna Telrunya, yodeladyhoo, Faeries Midwife, notwritten, Heartonachain and silver.shadow23 for their reviews. Please remember to R&R!!_

Chapter Nine: Concequences

"Marissa, a word." Jareth stood at the door to the most gaudily decorated room in the castle and once again sent a universal thanks out to whichever deity had advised him not to let her decorate the palace.

"Yes, dear husband?" The woman by the fire looked up and smiled at him sweetly. He knew it was a lie.

"About the incident earlier."

"Oh you're not honestly still worried about that _pathetic_ little slave thing?" She demanded. He felt his anger rising and it took all of his self control not to lash out at her,

"The Taken are not _slaves_. They should be treated with the same dignity as the most common Fae."

"Why do you always defend them?"

"That girl may never be able to work again, you almost completely destroyed her hand. It was _not_ a candle you held it in, I know that much."

"Anyone would think that those creatures were the only things loyal to you, the way you protect them. You treat them better than you treat me."

"They deserve better treatment than you. I am _responsible_ for them! Have you _no_ comprehension of that?"

"I don't see why you should be. It's not like it's your fault they get wished away." She toyed with a strand of hair, her face petulant. Jareth tried not to let his frustration with his occasionally child like wife get the better of him. "If they were half intelligent, they would only just reach the level of a worm."

"Let me get just _one_ thing clear. If this _ever_ happens again, whether you be my wife or no, I will have you flogged. I do not treat my horses in that manner, I will _not_ allow the Taken to be treated with such contempt any longer." He left the room, slamming the door behind him.

He did not stop moving until he was back in his study, closing the door quietly behind him and leaning on it, pinching the bridge of his nose, his head bowed. After several minutes he looked to see Sarah stood by the fire, waiting.

"What is it this time?" He asked wearily. She curtseyed.

"I wanted to thank you, for what you did for Toya. Her hand is almost perfect again."

"Almost? I suppose you want me to perfect it now?" He snapped, too tired to deal with Sarah and her demands.

"No, that's not what I meant. I understand that you can't heal it completely, I never expected you to heal it at all." He shot her filthy look. "Ok," She admitted, "I _did_ want you to heal it, but I never _expected_ you to. Thank you." Sincerity shone from her eyes and he found it hard to stay angry for long. He crossed the room, nodding in reply to her thanks, and sinking into the large chair that had been placed by the fire. He had a headache and he rubbed his forehead with an angry mutter.

"Headache?" She asked sympathetically from behind him. He grunted, half expecting her to have left by now. He felt a gentle, almost hesitant, touch on his shoulders. "What's got you so worked up?" She asked softly, beginning to massage his shoulders, taking some of the tension out of them.

"It's unimportant."

"I see... you want to talk about it?"

"My wife," her hands stopped moving for the briefest of seconds, then she continued.

"What about her?" Her voice was a little strained but she stayed, which surprised him.

"She treats the Taken in a way that disgusts me. She _will_ not _listen_ when I ask her not to. I've tried so many times to change her, but she never listens."

"You've only got another nine months and I hear you can divorce her." He snorted.

"Nine months," he relaxed back into her hands. "It feels like forever."

"Not long then," he could almost feel her grin burning into the back of his head, "not for someone who will live forever."

"Would it surprise you to learn that even the Fae have a limited life span?" He asked, not expecting her to answer. "I'm five hundred and ninety nine, when I married Marissa it was the day I turned two hundred, I was barely more than a child. Now I am nearly half way through my life," his voice was low, "and I can't stand to be near the woman I have married, I have no children or heirs and the woman I ..." he trailed off as she stopped massaging his back and he waited for a moment until he heard glass clink, then she was in front of him with a glass of red wine.

"Don't worry about it so much, Jareth," her voice was soft as she looked down at him and handed over the wine. "You won't find someone in nine months, not someone _that_ special, trust me. Besides, you won't exactly be in a position to honour the agreement will you? Worry about the divorce for the moment. Worry about the future another time." She curtseyed and went to the door to leave. "Oh, Your Majesty?" He looked up at her, she was grinning madly. "Get some sleep, no woman in right mind would marry you looking like you do at the moment." She giggled as she closed the door and ran, certain that he would be hot on her heals.

_It was a little fluffier than I wanted it to be, but this chapter has been through seven rewrites and this was the best I could get it. I'm justifying it was Sarah wanting to do something nice for Jareth after he helped Toya and I'm gonna leave it at that. R&R please, it's always fun._

_Artemis_


	10. Chapter 10

_Ok, so I know it's Thursday and I said Friday, it's early! You all wore me down with your lovely reviews. Thank you's to: Faeries Midwife, yodeladyhoo, Mint Tea Rose, rose217, notwritten sweetbobby33 and silver.shadow23. You're all brilliant. Oh and I figured out where my inspiration for this fic came from. Would you believe it was a line in a song? A single line! 'Any Other World' by Mika, and the line that set this whole mess off?_

"_Because it's all in the hands, of a bitter, bitter man,_

_Say goodbye, to the world you thought you lived in,_

_Take a bow, play the part, of a lonely, lonely heart_

_Say goodbye to the world you thought you lived in," _

_Ultimately the whole chorus helped but it was that first line that really set it off. _

_Anyway, I own neither song or the Labyrinth, though Clara and the other OC's are all mine! _

Chapter Ten: Summer Solstice.

As days went past, Jareth could feel the pull of the summer upon him, the days became longer and this was the hardest time of the year for him. This was the day when both Fae men and women were the most able to conceive. Each year the drive to attempt to create a child, even with a woman he despised, became greater and greater. In the days leading up to the midsummer ball, he would hide himself in his chambers, the maids were not even allowed in to change the sheets.

For Marissa, the summer solstice was the best time, she, too, could feel its magical pull on her body and each year she knew that Jareth became less and less able to resist her. She also knew that this year may well be her last chance. If he could hold off for the next eight months, he would divorce her. The idea of the divorce terrified her, it would bring great shame to her and to her Fairy clan. This she could not afford.

Marissa had not been happy when she had been told that she was betrothed to a man who was nearly one hundred years her junior. She had always been raised to believe that she was beautiful, and with her trim figure, long raven hair and her turquoise eyes, she was. Upon seeing Jareth, she had decided that she was the victim of a cruel joke. True he was handsome, and as he had reached maturity he had grown into his looks. However, blonde men did nothing for her, his hair style, while obviously needing monthly trims, was wild and totally untamable. It was his eyes, though, that had repulsed her the most, the eyes which were the only sign that he ruled over the goblins, considered by many as the _most_ ugly creatures in the Underground. His mismatched eyes of sea green and royal blue disturbed her, it had taken a great deal of self control to win the young king over and she cursed the plague that had carried off his parents.

For Jareth, the idea of getting married had come as a horrible shock. Being told at the age of one hundred and ninety seven that he would be married on the day he reached true maturity had upset him. When he had seen Marissa, however, that opinion had changed. He wanted his birthday to arrive faster so that he could marry her. He found out what a mistake she would be on his wedding night. Not only had Marissa sent her maid, one of the Taken and a girl who Jareth had helped to raise, from the room in hysterics, a brilliant red mark on her cheek, she had also taunted him and his "lack of proper experience." She had been so unwaveringly cruel that night, that the marriage had never been consummated. From the day he had been married to this day, he had been celibate. It was understandably hard for him and now he just wanted the final year to be over.

With Sarah now here, things had gotten worse. He was beginning to forgive her for what she had done to the Goblin City and the castle. She had not known that things would have the result that they had. She was a good worker, pulling more than her weight in any given task. Better, she cared about her colleagues, defending them against both him and his wife. In the eight years since he had seen her, she had matured beautifully. Now he had begun to forgive her, old feelings were stirring. Things he thought he had buried, and with the summer ball that night, he knew that he would need the protection of his feelings for her to keep him from his wife. As he adjusted his ruffled collar in the mirror, he hoped that his plans for the evening would go as he wanted them to.

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He sat and watched as the nobles of the Goblin Court whirled around him, the same decadence on display that he had allowed Sarah a brief glimpse of all those years before. He had opened the ball by dancing with his wife, a task he truly hoped _never _to have to repeat again. In one hand he held a goblet of the finest water, clear and sparkling, he knew that Marissa had drugged the decanter of wine before him with a potion of lust, and in his other hand he held his riding crop. He tapped the crop lazily against his thigh as he watched, bored and tired of the desire that ran through his veins.

With an almost negligent swing of the riding crop he nudged the decanter and it fell, splashing his pristine white trousers with brilliant red. He muttered to himself, shouted a curse for good measure, swiped the crop and the nearest, unfortunate goblin and marched out. Behind him the Court stopped and watched, then continued.

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Sarah stood on the balcony, staring up at the moon, her eyes distant, also feeling the magic of the midsummer solstice and wishing that she could not. To take her mind off her feelings and how much they disturbed her, she thought about how she had wound up in this place. Why she had been on the plane in the first place, why she had called out to Jareth in her time of need and why she had been so unwilling to die when all she hard really wanted was to do just that.

"Sarah," a soft voice interrupted her thoughts and she turned to look at the door. It was Jareth, his tight trousers now a midnight blue and his poet's shirt white and half open so that she could see the pale skin of his chest. She once again cursed the pull of the midsummer moon and turned away from him, trying to distract her self from his strong sexual allure by picking at the stone railing.

"Your Majesty," she breathed, he came to stand next to her, not leaning as she was, but she could feel his eyes on her. "Should you not be at the ball?" She asked quietly, now trying to ignore the silent command from his staring eyes that she look up at him.

"I grew weary of such trivial pursuits." He shrugged and decided to lean on the same railing, better able to see her face and her eyes. "I would have thought that you would be enjoying the servants party right now." She laughed harshly and looked up into his mismatched eyes.

"I don't really fit in down there. I just wanted to be alone." She let her gaze linger and he lowered his head to press his lips against hers. For a second he thought she would respond and knew that if she did all was lost, but she did not. Instead she pushed him away, her face a mask of anger and pain. "What the hell are you doing?" She demanded. "You're _married_."

"It's hardly the happiest of marriages, Sarah."

"I don't care if it's happy or not! I won't become the other woman. I won't put your wife in the same..." She trailed off as she realised what she had been about to tell him.

"'In the same' _what_, Sarah?" he asked as he moved closer to her, his voice low, husky with suppressed desire. She glared back at him, moving away, towards the door and freedom.

"It's not important," she whispered, trying to hide her pain from him and doubting that she was succeeding.

"What's said is said," he reminded her and she nodded but did not answer his question. "Sarah, _why_ were you on that ridiculous flying machine?"

"It's called a plane. I was going to see my family."

"Without your lover?" So he had known about Jason. Despite her best efforts, tears began to fill her eyes. He looked at her for just a moment before he realised why. "He was with another." He said it softly and took her into his arms, holding her as she began to sob.

"I walked in on them, they were in our bed." Her voice was quiet and he understood the sentence that she had not finished. She would not put Marissa in the same place that she had been. She had more integrity than that. He stayed silent and when she stopped crying she moved away from him.

"Thank you," he bowed his head but his face had taken on his usual mask of cool indifference. He turned away from her and she realised that he was still angry with her. She turned to leave. "Sometimes," she paused, "sometimes I wish that you could see past your anger over what I did. I was an ignorant teenager. I wish you could just see me for what I am." She walked away, magic shimmering in the air around the King as she did.

"I already do, Sarah, I already have."

_Bad Jareth, bad! Silly stupid Fae king!! Why can't he just wait eight damn months. I was _getting_ to the damn kiss already. Ah well, more scope for confrontation now. Next update after the weekend. And ooh look! Wish magic, he he, but just because he's already forgiven her, doesn't mean that he has to be nice, right? Right? Oh and just quickly, thoughts on Sarah having a little love interest? Jareth having a rival for her "affections"? As always R&R, the more I get, the quicker I update! Just for you all, next time, we learn even more about Clara, Jareth and Torel. Will Sarah get to go home? _

_Artemis_


	11. Chapter 11

_Well, it's Saturday and I'm updating. Once again, I have to thank all of my reviewers: fairytaleangels, Nienna Telrunya, yodeladyhoo, marajadel, Mint Tea Rose, rose217, rose orchid, notwritten, sweetbabby33, Catwoman99, AvitarGirl and Anna McNarin, coming home to see the reviews makes this worth while._

_Oh, look at me, all sentimental and all. Anyway, Sarah goes home, and we see more of Clara and Torel.Please remember to R&R, I really do enjoy them!!_

Chapter Eleven: Friendships.

Jareth and Torel had been raised together, they were the best of friends, yet they had always been restricted by that unique problem of the King and his subject. Torel had to show just the right amount of reverence towards his king, yet Jareth also expected him to give advise in the same manner as a friend might. It was hard for the Fae steward and it made him glad of his wife and three sons. Torel had married fifty years after his King, yet Vilae had been the first to give birth to a child, twenty years later, it had been the first hint that Torel had received that something was wrong with Jareth's marriage.

It had not been Jareth, however, who had told him of the problem. It had been Clara who had approached him, concerned over the welfare of her former charge. After Jareth's parent's had been killed in a great Fae plague, the tiny, eccentric, Goblin woman had raised Jareth, teaching him to be a fair king and educating him in all things Goblin in a way that no Fae king in the past had been. She had known what was wrong and she had spoken to Jareth long and hard about it. She had needed Torel's knowledge of Fae law to help the young king find a way out of his unhappy marriage. Despite the fact that Jareth was now reaching his middle years, she still thought of him as the boy-child she had taken in and raised almost as her own. It came as no surprise to her that he summoned her a couple of days after the midsummer ball to ask her advice.

"Clara," his voice was soft as he stared out of the window, he rarely left that vantage point now, he had even had his desk moved so that he could watch the progress his subjects were making as he worked.

"Jareth," the tiny goblin rarely used titles.

"How is Sarah?" He asked, wanting to know how she was getting on in the position she had been given from Clara, not from what little he had dared to observe, something he hoped that Clara had not noticed. Unfortunately, it seemed that his hopes had been in vain.

"Ask her yourself, King-Child, you watch her enough. Thought you that I had not noticed?" She cackled, then hit the back of one of his knees with her stick. "I know what you did during the ball. I watch her too, Young-One. Will you jeopardise your chance for happiness?" He sighed and leant heavily on the stone windowsill.

"The moon..."

"Argh, Fae lies, Little-King, the moon has nothing to do with your actions. Have you forgiven her?"

"No," his voice was sullen and his brilliant eyes dull.

"Then what right have you to try to claim her?" The goblin matron's tone was reasonable. "The Taken, Toya, why did you heal her?"

"Sarah wanted me to." He shrugged.

"You do this for her, yet you cannot forgive her?"

"The gift I gave her, I must grant her petty whims and wishes. I healed the girl because my gift told me I must. For that same reason I cannot send her home and I cannot make her anything more than what she is now. Not only does she have the power of this gift held over my head, I must also protect her as one of the Taken." Clara nodded, silent, letting her king talk his way through his problem. "No Taken has ever had a noble position. If I showed her that kind of favouritism, it would draw attention to her. As much as she desires luxury, she wants to be safe. How do I explain that to her, Clara. Can I make her understand?"

"Why can you not take her home?" The goblin answered.

"Because her family think she is dead. I gave them a body, everything they needed for closure. If Marissa thinks she is dead, she won't try anything."

"Marissa knows she is not. Unlike you, Young-One, Marissa does not let emotion cloud her judgement. She knows that only Sarah could have made you heal Toya. Your 'gift' has nothing to do with it. You know that it was voided the instant she wished herself to your power." He nodded but did not speak. "You are hiding behind a lie, Little-One."

"But _how_ does this help me make Sarah understand?" He turned away from the window to look at Clara. Her wizened face was grave and her eyes had the gleam of tears.

"You must understand her."

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Jareth looked into the book of the Taken, a book that recorded the life of every child that had been wished away before they came to the Underground. It was large and half full, he was staring at the last entry when he heard the knock he had been expecting.

"Come, Sarah!" He called, there was a stunned moment and the door opened slowly, cautiously. Sarah stepped in and shut it behind her, curtseyed but did not come closer. "Do you know what day it is?" He asked, a line of worry on his otherwise perfect forehead. She shook her head. "Today is the day that you turn twenty four. Your birthday." Her jaw dropped, what possible reason could he have to decide to mention her birthday? Did he think that it would help him get her into his bed?

"I don't understand..."

"Do you still wish to return home? Even knowing that your parents, your lover," she scowled, "sorry, your _former_ lover, all believe that you are dead."

"Of course I do! But you told me it was impossible!"

"Sarah, I'm trying to protect you and them. You wish them safe and happy." She opened her mouth to argue, but saw the serious expression in his mismatched eyes and fell silent. "Please try not to argue with me." He held up his hand. "I will grant you this as your birthday gift. I will take you to see your family for a few hours. If you still wish to see them after you have had the night to think about it, I will send you back permanently. _However_, as far as they are concerned, you will still be dead. I cannot change three months of memories."

"You make people forget others."

"Making them forget a death is impossible. You will have to find a way around that yourself. For now," he stood and walked to her. "Take my hand and let us begin."

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Clara looked at Torel over her desk, the Fae fiddled with his glass as he stared out of her window, mirroring the actions of his King only hours before. She stilled his long, delicate, hand with one of her own tiny claws and scowled at him.

"Will you calm, Torel?" She snapped. "He simply wants her to understand."

"I wish _I_ understood! Three and a half months ago he was ready to kill her!" Clara nodded.

"Love is the great healer."

"He doesn't love her!"

"Really? 'But what nobody knew was that the King of the Goblins had fallen in love with the girl, and had given her special powers.' Sound familiar, does it? She is the only one who ever defeated him. She was the only one he really gave his heart to."

"But _why_? So many have run the Labyrinth in the past, why did he fall for this one?" Clara laughed at him, a strangely gravelly sound.

"She is the only one to defeat him. She is the only one with the fire that matches his. She _burnt_ him, Torel. The burn pains him, obsesses him. Only she can heal it."

"And when Marissa finds out, she's going to kill us all."

"_Stupid_ Little Fairy Thing!" Clara snapped. "What knows she? Thinks the Taken are nothing but slaves. We will teach her, wait eight months and we will teach her the meaning of slave."

"Jareth won't let you."

"Torel-Child, I was ancient when the King was _born_. What makes you think he could stop me?" The Fae looked a little disturbed at the heat in the Goblin's crackled voice, her eyes burning with anger. Deciding to get away from the situation as quickly as he could, Torel set his drink down and stood hurridly.

"I have to go!" He ran out of the room, Clara's, mocking laughter following.

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Sarah had expected to materialise outside her family home. She had been wrong. Jareth kept a tight grip on her hand as she looked around at her surroundings. She was in a graveyard, tombstones all around her, stood under a large tree that she could not identify.

"Look," Jareth whispered in her ear, sending shivers down her spine and she berated herself for letting it happen. She turned to look where he was pointing and saw her family stood at a grave, heads bowed and silent.

Her father looked thin and pale, his face had lost that half smile that had always played about his lips. His hair was thin, now, and completely gray, though he was only just fifty. Karen stood next to him, one arm around his waist as if trying to support him, the other around Toby's shoulders. Her face was covered with worry lines, though Sarah knew that they were not for her. Her stepmother's hair was also prematurely gray and Sarah suspected it had to do with her father's failing health. Toby was not unchanged either. He had grown, his hair still that soft gold that it had been when he was a baby. His blue eyes were wide and she could see the tracks of tears on his cheeks. The little boy was the first to speak.

"Happy Birthday, Sarah," he muttered as he set a small posy of wild flowers onto her grave. "I got you these 'cause I know they're you favourite. Michael says hi, he misses you too. I try to tell him the stories but you always did it better." Sarah felt her heart break as she listened to her brother talk. Michael had been another boy, about Toby's age that she had looked after as they had gotten older and she had been amazed to find that she actually enjoyed it.

"Hey, sweetheart, Happy Birthday," her father muttered then, tears streaming down his face as Sarah felt herself react the same way. "We miss you. I just wish..." Jareth tensed at her side, but Robert stopped as Karen whispered something to him. Sarah pulled away from Jareth and walked towards them. All three looked at her, but did not register that the recognised her. Only Toby noticed the tears and he turned to his mother whispering.

"Don't be silly, Toby. She was probably visiting her mother's grave." Karen smiled apologetically at Sarah before turning and leading her family away. Sarah watched them, a forlorn expression on her young face as she felt Jareth approach her from behind.

"Take me back," she whispered, her voice breaking.

"But, Sarah, you still have three hours here," he purred, not oblivious to her pain, just not wanting her to see how it had affected him.

"Dammit! I said _take me back_!" She screamed, turning and lashing out, pounding on his chest in her fury, knowing that he could well kill her for it and not really caring. He stood, silent, waiting for her to stop, feeling every blow and absorbing the pain for her, knowing that she had to let it out. Finally she collapsed against him, sobbing. "Just take me back, please, Jareth, take me back."

He folded her in his arms and transported her out of the graveyard and back to her room in the castle, knowing that any and all progress that he had made with her had been undone. He only hoped that this display of cruelty would be enough to convince Marissa that he had no real feelings for the girl who had defeated him.

_Oh I'm a little mean. Mean and nasty Jareth. That's going to come back and get him eventually. Hehe! Anyway, let me know what you thought, it's a bit longer than usual. I'll try and update by thursday, will have to see what my social life is like in between._

_Artemis_


	12. Chapter 12

_Ah, my promised update. Once again it is a little early, it's Wednesday evening where I am, I don't know what it is where you all are. Big thanks to all who have been reading and even bigger thanks to my reviewers: yodeladyhoo, Mint Tea Rose, kitsamuels, AvitarGirl, notwritten, Anna McNarin, LilithBlack333, Catwoman99, SileaLove and Sweetbabby33. Once again, I'm amazed by the response I'm getting. Again, please R&R._

Chapter Twelve: Goblin Market

Sarah wandered through the castle, the purse at her belt containing her meager wages for the last few months and she wanted to go to the market to buy a few personal items, little things that she had been without since she had arrived, like a hairbrush. She was heading towards Clara's office and the way she was meandering through the corridors told anyone who happened to be watching that she was not paying much attention to what was happening around her. As she rounded a corner, she walked straight into Jareth, who was coming in the opposite direction from Clara's office. He caught her in his arms as she looked up at him, startled.

"Your Majesty!" She exclaimed in shock, quickly disengaging herself from his grasp. He held her a little tighter than was necessary for a moment before releasing her, her struggles caused her to overbalance and she wound up sat on the floor in a rather embarrassing fall. She glared at him as he laughed and he offered his hand to her to aid her in standing. She refused it and struggled past the skirts onto her own two feet. He shrugged refusing to take the insult and leant against the wall, preventing her from going past.

"Where are you going?" He asked, mildly curious.

"To see Clara," Sarah tried to continue past but again, the Goblin King stopped her.

"Why?" He asked in his best little boy voice, knowing it would irritate her. Sure enough, she cast him a filthy look before she continued.

"I need to get a few things, I need to know where I can find a market." Her tone was a little snide.

"What things?"

"A hairbrush, a new dress, a few other things that you saw fit to leave me without. I've been using second hand things and none of those are in any fit condition for use anyway. My hairbrush is now broken beyond repair and I've had to wait five days so that I can leave the castle. I need to ask Clara where I can find a new one."

"Clara is busy right now," inwardly he recoiled from the ferocity of her glare, but outwardly he let his face remain neutral. "Give me a list of what you require and I will see that it is obtained and the value of it is deducted from your wages."

"No offence, but I'd rather get my own." She managed to get past him. "I'm sure Clara won't mind if I see her for a moment." He grabbed her arm, hard and she cried out in pain.

"Clara is doing a task _I_ have set her and she is _not_ to be disturbed. If you will not provide me with a list then you will accompany me as I inspect the city, I am going to the market at the end. You can go then." She continued to glare at him, but realised that this would be her only opportunity for a long while, so agreed with as much grace as she could muster. "Besides, it will be a good chance for you to see first hand, the results of your actions," he hissed maliciously, not really meaning it, but enjoying the hurt that flashed across her face all the same.

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Sarah walked a step behind the King, staring around her in wonder. Around her ankles Goblin children played, darting in and out of their homes as their mothers watched from doorways and windows, each preparing a number of different vegetables and raw meats. Each house had a tiny garden that was full of growing plants and the same vegetables that seemed to be part of the staple diet of the goblins. Jareth smiled as one of the children offered him a small posy of flowers, which he took before she was ushered away by her mother. He handed the flowers back to Sarah to carry

"Since you're here you may as well make yourself useful." He told her in a cold voice as the reached the end of the rebuilt houses and came into a wasteland of rock and rubble. Around her goblins toiled, lifting impossibly large blocks of solid granite with their tiny paws, their faces contorted in concentration. It took her a moment to notice that two of them were not goblins. Hoggle and Didymus, her friends, were labouring beside the tiny goblins, moving the stones that they could not move. Neither looked particularly healthy, Hoggle looked thin, his eyes sunken into his face and the little hair that he had once hidden under his cap was all but gone. There was an air of perpetual exhaustion around him and he paused for a moment, until a goblin flicked him with a whip. The dwarf did not even cry out, he simply picked up the rock he had been carrying and continued on his way. He had not even noticed her.

"Why?" She asked Jareth, her green eyes luminous with tears. He smirked down at her.

"They betrayed me, Sarah. Believe me, this is the most generous punishment I could issue. Had Marissa had her way... let us just say that your friend would no longer be in one piece, or two pieces, or even three. Marissa can be creative in her punishments. I do this for their own good! I am protecting them!"

"Protection? You expect me to believe that? You're killing them!"

"I have to show that I am a fair king, Sarah," He voice was weary. "I also have to prove that treachery will be punished, this is as much of a punishment as any."

"And my birthday 'gift'? What was that? Proof that you're a malicious, sadistic _bastard_?" The posy of flowers fell to the ground unnoticed.

"Silence!" He snapped, now aware that the goblins had stopped their work and were staring at them, but Sarah was in full swing now and she was not about to stop.

"I've heard of some _twisted_ things, _Goblin King_, but taking someone to see their family mourning over her own grave on her _birthday_? That's a whole new low." It was taking all of Jareth's self control not to raise his hand against her as he would a goblin. His most sacred rule was to _never_ physically hurt one of the Taken. As much as it annoyed him, sometimes, Sarah was now one of the Taken. He could not strike, even though he wanted to, and even then she had nearly pushed him over the edge a number of times since she had arrived.

Sarah saw his hands clench into fists at his side and she remembered when she had first asked to go home, remembered the way he had twisted her arm after she had slapped him and the red marks that had not faded for two days.

"You're no better than your _queen_," she spat, "no matter what you want to believe." He went red with anger, his mismatched eyes flashing scarlet in the quickly obscured sunlight as thunderclouds rolled overhead. The goblins backed away, recognising the signals of the King's rage. Sarah also noticed and took a step nervous backwards, realising that she had gone too far and not sure how to take the words back, not understanding why she even cared.

Jareth did not make a move towards her, however, as she had expected him too. Instead he turned away, looking up at the rolling black above him and taking a deep, calming breath. He stood like that for a while as the clouds rolled overhead, distant growls of thunder reaching Sarah's ears as she watched him.

"I am _nothing_," he spoke finally, his voice straining with the effort to sound calm, acutely aware of his subjects watching and waiting for him to explode in rage, "like my _wife_." he turned back to her, his face once again pale with only two spots of colour, high on his cheeks, to tell of his earlier rage. "You _wished_ to go home, but you failed to specify _how_ or _where_. I gave you an opportunity to glimpse your life before making it permanent. I have been _generous_ with you time and again." He moved very close to her and she felt a lump come to her throat, seeing raw pain and anger in his eyes. "It is _you_ who cannot see the real person, _you_ who cannot release your anger. _You_ are the one who cannot let go of the past." He took her arm in his hand and held it tight. "We will go to the market, you will pick up your trinkets and we will return to the castle. Be thorough. A trip to the market is a privilege earned, it is not a _right_."

Sarah felt a wrench as he transported them away and when they reappeared, Jareth almost flung her away from him. Then he leant against a nearby wall and watched her as she staggered away, clearly amazed by the ferocity in his actions and the anger in his eyes as he watched her.

The market was a hive of noisy activity. All around her were goblins of all shapes and sizes. Not only goblins, she realised with a start, she could see elves and fairies weaving their way through the crowds. Sarah could even see a centaur behind one of the stalls, which was decorated with intricate star charts. She glanced back over at Jareth for a second, but he was talking with an elf, all signs of his ill humour gone as he laughed, something she had never seen him do and she was amazed at how much difference it made to his face when he did. Gone was the cold, aloof, man, one who seemed to have carried the weight of the world on his shoulders for centuries. In his place was a young, open, handsome man, one that she surprised herself by wanting to know better. He saw her watching and a ghost of a smile touched his lips before he scowled and mocked tapping a watch, a gesture he must have seen many humans use in the past.

Sarah shook her head at her foolish thoughts, _-He doesn't love you, silly girl, he used it to try and win!-_ She mentally berated herself, feeling stupid for letting such childish thoughts enter her mind. She quickly began to walk, meandering through the crowds and stopping at various stalls to look at the items on sale. As she moved she found a new hairbrush, a handheld mirror and a pale green head scarf. She lingered a long time at that stall, looking at the various scarfs and the variety of colours. She had never been a fan before she had come back to the Labyrinth, but now, with the head scarf the only part of her personality that she could put into her simple uniform, she wanted a good selection. Unfortunately, she could only afford the one scarf with the other items that she had bought and the ones that she still had to buy.

"Seen another you like?" The elf behind the stall asked as he handed her the little package containing her purchase.

"No, it doesn't matter," she smiled softly as she took the package. He grinned and winked at her.

"Half price?" He offered with a grin. Sarah had to admit that it was tempting, but with so much of her pay going towards room and board, and so much more of it now going on an every day dress for her days off and the other little things she needed, she had only had enough to spare for the one scarf.

"Maybe another time." She muttered. He nodded, disappointment flaring briefly in his chestnut eyes before he handed her the change and she walked away, feeling his eyes in her back. She dwelt a little on his expression before something caught her eye on one of the other stalls. It was a necklace, a silver disk, embossed with a raised wolfs head, so lifelike that she almost fancied she saw it move. She stared down at it, daring to wish she could own it, wish that she could afford to own it.

"Like it, dearie?" The oddly shaped goblin behind the counter asked.

"Yeah," she breathed, still staring.

"You want to buy it?"

"Can't, I've got other things I have to get today." She tore herself away from the stall and continued along her way.

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Jareth watched her, a black look on his face. Clara had told him to try and understand her before he tried to tell her why he was doing things the way he was. Instead it had all backfired beautifully.

"Jareth?" He heard a surprised voice and saw his cousin baring down on him, his face a mixture of surprise and joy.

"Rilton!" He laughed, genuinely happy to see him.

"What are you doing here?" The elf asked, followed Jareth's line of sight as he saw him scowl. "What's wrong?" Jareth made an odd gesture to the woman he was looking at and Rilton felt his jaw drop. She was stunning, even though she wore the severe gray of the maids uniform, her hair was loose and fell in soft waves down her back. Her green eyes sparkled and the tiniest, dreamy smile was on her face until she saw Jareth's gesture and the smile disappeared. When she turned, he could see the defeated posture of her shoulders and he heard Jareth sigh as they watched her.

"New maid?" Rilton asked quietly.

"One I wish I had never taken." Jareth muttered sourly. "Sarah is more trouble than she is worth."

"_Sarah_! _The_ Sarah?" He grinned at his cousin. "Now I understand," he smirked. "If you don't want her can I have her?" The look Jareth gave him was icy. "Now, now, cousin, your married."

"Not for much longer."

"Eight months is long enough for me, and too long for you." Rilton laughed at Jareth's expression and held up his hands. "Honestly, cousin, what if Marissa saw you, or her for that matter. Better that she thinks _I'm_ the one who's interested, don't you think? I'll see you later." He laughed as he disappeared, ignoring Jareth's black look.

_-I wish it were mine,-_ Sarah's voice buzzed in his head. He wondered what it was and glanced over to where she was standing, an old jewelry stall. He smiled gently, the little old goblin that owned it rarely sold anything there. He knew that he did not _have _to grant the wish, she was on his turf now, the rules were his, but he was curious all the same. He watched as she moved and then made his own way to the stall. The goblin woman behind looked up at him and her face took on that blank groveling look he had come to know so well.

"What was she looking at?" He asked, ensuring he kept his tone neutral. The goblin pointed at the wolf pendent and he shook his head, he ought to have known. "Send the bill to the castle." He ordered as he picked it up and tucked it into his shirt.

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Sarah was exhausted when she returned to her rooms. Jareth had taken them both back to his study and refused, point blank, to help her take her shopping back to her room. She muttered a brief curse as she dropped her packages in her bed and flopped down next to them with a small sigh. With a few deep breaths she began to process the events of the day, the rebuilding of the city, Hoggle and Didymus, her fight with Jareth. -_Way to go, Sarah, start a shouting war in the middle of the street!_- Her sudden realisation about how handsome Jareth could be, and his elf friend.

A glint caught her eye and she looked at the table.

"I don't believe it!" She snapped. It was the wolf head pendent she had been admiring earlier that day. There was a note underneath it.

_A peace offering._

_J_

_There you all are. My next offering to you and it's even longer than usual. I hope you enjoy it, again, please R&R. Ooh, new character! Wonder what kind of mischef Rilton's going to cause in the Goblin Castle I'm quite fond of him, actually. If you have anything you would like me to torment him with, please tell me, he's been prancing around my head sining loudly for the last five hours and I'm running out of things to threaten him with! (I'm mad, did no one tell you this?) I won't be updating until Wednesday next week, I'm going away on Friday and while I can take my laptop with me, I won't have any internet access, damn it all to hades!_

_Artemis_


	13. Chapter 13

_I'm back and I'm giving you a little update. Apologies to all of those who reviewed the last chapter that I did not reply to, I'm updating now before reading the reviews that I've received since Thursday night, I'm a little eager to get this out. I will reply to them, however, as soon as I am done here. I'm so glad that Rilton seems to be going down well, even if he does seem to have an overwhelming fondness for the sound of his own voice. (Don't you just hate it when a character takes on a life of their own?) To that end this chapter is a little lighter than some of the previous chapters, with a bit more of the elf. As always, please R&R._

Chapter Thirteen: Rilton

Sarah listened to the other women talking as she washed one of Marissa's nightgowns. She could tell a lot about the owner from the style of the dress. It was pale pink, with senseless ruffles and frills and Sarah really could not understand the reasoning behind it, no one would ever see her in it. She turned her mind away from the nightdress and started to listen to the conversation again, it had changed to something else, something she found herself much more interested in.

"Toya was telling me that there's a new noble in the castle," Nadine commented, the scar faced girl made a rude noise and rolled her eyes. "Well there is," Nadine continued, well aware that they really had better things to do than discuss the latest arrival at the Goblin Castle and not caring, "he's the King's cousin, on his mother's side, Prince Rilton."

"An elf, apparently he's better looking than the king." Another added. Nadine laughed at her but did not reply.

"The king met him at the market yesterday," she elaborated, then turned to Sarah. "You were there yesterday, did you see him?" Sarah frowned, thinking.

"Actually I think I did. Jareth was talking to him while I was shopping." The other girls ignored her use of his name, now used to it. "From what I could see he was quite attractive."

"That's what I heard," Nadine agreed, "Gen isn't so sure though. Are you, Gen?" She looked at the scar faced woman, who shuddered a little. "Elves aren't her thing." Sarah laughed, Gen had a problem with most Faerie creatures. Gen scowled at her, then stomped across the room, sheets in her arms and her remaining eye flashing with anger. Sarah watched her walk away with a small frown.

"Don't worry about her, Sarah, she's just upset because you've got the King's ear."

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Rilton meandered through the corridors, opening random doors and poking his head in until he seemed to finally find what he was looking for. The Elf Prince smirked as he slipped into the servants corridors, his youthful face alight with mischievous intent. He walked silently through the dim passage, wondering, and not for the first time, why his cousin was under the impression that servants passages had to be dark, damp and miserable, Jareth had just rebuilt the castle after all. As he neared the end of the passage, Rilton saw sunlight streaming in through a half open door and he looked through the crack. There was a woman sat there, alone, humming to herself as she sat mending a hole in the shirt of some unfortunate minor noble. It was not the content humming of someone enjoying their work, rather it was the humming of someone bored to within an inch of their life and trying to find something, _anything_, to alleviate said state. He recognised her as the girl he had seen with Jareth in the market place the day before and grinned at his luck finding her alone.

Sarah's head snapped up as she heard the door creak open the rest of the way and she stared, awed as an elf walked in. He was tall, not overly so, but enough to make him imposing, his hair was blue/black, that hung in soft curls over his pointed ears. He had full lips that just screamed to be kissed and molten chocolate brown eyes that made her long for a large tub of the stuff. His skin was tanned, with a slight green cast and she could see his white, even, teeth as he smiled at her, a smile that made her knees tremble a little as she sat looking at him.

"Hello, Sarah," he bowed, his soft brown trousers no where near as tight as those of the Goblin King, and his poets shirt exposed only a minimal amount of flesh. As an object to create sexual desire, Sarah had to admit that this man was more attractive.

"And you would be?" She replied, her eyes flickering back to her sewing.

"Rilton, Jareth's cousin," he held up his hand. "Don't stand, I can't bare all that formality." He grinned at her as she shifted uncomfortably. "I've been looking for you." Sarah smiled at him, feeling instantly at ease with the tall Elf in a way that she had not been since she had arrived.

"You found me," he smirked at her. "Why were you looking?"

"I wanted to congratulate you on defeating Jareth. It's about time that someone beat him at his own game." Sarah laughed again.

"I'm sure that others have done it before me."

"No one has ever beaten Jareth, I thought that no one ever would. You're something special, Miss Williams."

Unknown to them, another person had arrived at the doorway as they had begun speaking, someone who had reason to hate Sarah and what she had done. Someone who wanted revenge.

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Rilton walked into Jareth's study, his cousin was reading a document of dubious importance and failed to notice the elf until he had flopped into the chair opposite the desk with a laugh. The blonde king looked up at his companion and pulled a face.

"I can't get rid of you, can I?" He asked with a mock shudder.

"Not with something like Sarah in the castle," Rilton muttered, a far away look in his eyes. Jareth raised an eyebrow at him and to his surprise the elf blushed. "She's very attractive." He elaborated. "Do you think she would come back to the Elven Court if I asked her? I could use some stimulating...conversation."

"No she would not." Jareth's voice was flat, understanding well the meaning behind Rilton's pause and knowing that it had not been what he had originally been intending to say. "She wished herself to me, Rilton. She belongs to me."

"Yet you grant her wishes?" He questioned back, earning himself a dark look from Jareth and finding himself feeling more than a little uncomfortable under his cousin's glare.

"I bestowed a gift upon her," Jareth pinched the bridge of his nose, leaning back in his chair with an exasperated sigh. "I admit that I never thought that she would use the gift the way that she did and I'm impressed that it took her eight years to find something that she wanted to use it for."

"But she's here now, she belongs to you as any one of the Taken would. I don't understand, why carry on granting her wishes?" Rilton conjured a glass of wine out of the air and sipped it. "It's not like you have to anymore."

"Because every now and then, she deserves a little gift, given freely with no strings attached. I haven't exactly treated her well."

"But you haven't treated her badly, you didn't give her to Marissa." Rilton pointed out as Jareth created his own wine. The Goblin King shook his head and Rilton felt something like dread settle around his heart.

"I almost did. I was almost so angry with her that I was tempted, for a moment, to hand her over to Marissa and let her deal with Sarah. It was wrong, but at the time it was so tempting." He stopped his cousin asking his next question by answering it for him, running his free hand through his wild hair and sighing. "Clara was the only one who could stop me. She told me that handing Sarah over to Marissa was signing her death warrant and as much as I wanted to kill her at the time, and still do sometimes, nobody deserves death by Marissa." Rilton laughed a little at that, though it sounded slightly strained and raised his glass.

"To getting rid of Marissa!"

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Rilton moaned as he opened his eyes. His back hurt, his head hurt, in fact every part of him hurt. He thought about what he had been doing the night before and was worried when he could not remember leaving Jareth's study. He sat up and promptly cracked his aching head on the underside of his bed. How had he managed to get his head _under_ his bed as opposed to _on_ it?

The servants door to his chambers opened and he groaned as the slight creak of underused hinges ripped through his skull. Then there was a giggle and that _definitely_ set his teeth on edge. A click announced that his unknown companion had set a glass on the table and then he saw feet from his place under the bed and heard a sigh.

"And here was me thinking that he was royalty." A woman muttered and he realised that it was Sarah. He moved to sit up again and repeated his actions of a moment before, this time with added cursing. He was more than a little put out that Sarah started to laugh again, before she grabbed his ankles and dragged him unceremoniously out. "You were easier to move when you were drunk." She muttered, grunting with exertion as she finally pulled him clear. He winced and shut his eyes again when he noticed that she had opened the curtains, then struggled into his bed and pulled the covers over his head with a moan. "Baby," she whispered before pulling them off again. "Time to get up, Your Royal Highness." She told him with what was altogether too much glee.

"Go away," he mumbled, rolling his too dry tongue around in his mouth and failing to notice the way that his words slurred. He could sense that she was still stood there and when she tugged on the quilt again, he cracked open one eye. She folded her arms over her chest and stared down at him, then raised her eyebrows. "Why did he send you anyway?"

"He didn't, Clara did." She mixed something in the glass she had placed by the bed and he reluctantly sat up when he realised that she had no intention of going until she was sure that he was ready to go. "Thought you might need this," she handed him the glass and he sniffed it before pulling a face and looking up at her. "Don't drink I if you don't want to." She shrugged and opened the door to his bathroom, turning the taps and still marveling that the occupants of the Underground had heard of plumbing and running hot water. He winced as the first drops of water struck the bottom of the copper bath, making his ears ring.

"What did I do last night?" He mumbled, surprised when she answered.

"Last I saw you, you were singing with the Goblins," she told him as he staggered out of bed and to the waiting tub as water continued to pour into it. He stared at her.

"What do you mean 'last I saw you'?"

"You and a couple of friends dropped by the kitchen in search of more food, or booze, not really sure which to be honest."

"Singing?" He asked as he tossed himself, clothes and all, into the tub. She nodded and if he was not _very_ much mistaken, she had a wicked gleam in her eyes.

"Well, singing is such a loose way to describe it. I mean, I'm not even sure if half of the notes that you hit were even _real_ notes." She grinned at him and he sunk further under the water as she turned off the taps. "Of course, the King had left you to your own devices hours before that. He's actually quite cheerful this morning." That made him sit up, Sarah describing the quiet, brooding Jareth that he had come to know the last eight years as cheerful, was cause for concern.

"I had better go and see him." He said, beginning to think clearly for the first time that morning. It was with a small sigh that he began to go about the task of stripping off his soaking clothes. "Do you mind?" He asked Sarah. She shook her head then remembered where she was and left, quietly, _smirking_ of all things. He groaned again. He would have to find some way of making her stay silent. A bruise on his hip caught his attention and he stared at it for a long moment.

"Just what did I _do_ last night?" He shouted and could have sworn he heard giggling from behind the servants door.

_It's not as long as it could have been, but I promise that you will have an update in a couple of days. Give me a better idea of what you think of Rilton now, he's been the comic relief so far. I have to admit that this story has become a lot more angst than I thought it was going to, and for those who ask, no, Jareth and Sarah are not going to kill each other, though Jareth may kill Rilton if the silly bugger doesn't watch what he's doing. Anyway, as always R&R, constructive criticism is always appreciated._

_Artemis _


	14. Chapter 14

_How nice am I? Crazy woman that I am, I decided that I would update today, after a rubbish day at work, coming home to all those wonderful reviews has made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. Thanks to my reviewers for the last two chapters: Anna McNarin, mydirtylittlesecret08, silver.shadow.23, draegon-fire, sweetbabby33, Catwoman99, notwritten, rose217, LabyLvrPhx, Mint Tea Rose, AvitarGirl, yodeladyhoo, mokosh, Me, ScarlethasPheonixpower, silver-stolen-wing and Solea, you're all amazing. I'm sorry that this chapter is going to be a little short, but it ends exactly where I want it to, and I'm not going to put more meaningless fluffyness into it just to make it longer. Again, R&R, I do love them._

Chapter Fourteen: Vengence.

Gen stormed through the castle, the sounds of Sarah's impression of Prince Rilton's singing in her ears. How could she? How dare she? She had returned, here of all places, the last place that she want to see her. Gen fingered the scars on her face. Sometimes she could still feel the poker that Marissa had used to take out her eye, some days she could still feel it moving under her eyelid. She muttered to herself as she walked, not understanding how she could have been so blind to who Sarah really was. The girl had the king's ear, she had Prince Rilton, who was known to shun the company of the servants, eating out of her hand! It had been so obvious and she had refused to see it.

Revenge was now in order. Gen would never forget that Marissa had been in a rage over Sarah when she had taken her eye and her looks. She could never get back at Marissa or the King, but she could get to Sarah and through Sarah she could get to Jareth and maybe, just maybe to Marissa too, if she played it just right.

She was making her way to the Goblin part of the castle, where those who remained homeless after Sarah had defeated Jareth, lived and slept. There were those Goblins in this place that would give their lives to see Sarah punished for what she had done, those who would be outraged at her living in apparent comfort, with all the luxuries that they did not have.

She could hear the noise of the Goblins through the door and it made her stop and rethink what she was about to do. The screams, cries and raucous laughter cut into her, laughter she remembered from the day that she had been wished away. Before Sarah the Goblins had been innocent creatures, playful and gentle, kind in a way that Human and Fae failed to appreciate. Now, however, they had learnt the true meaning of cruelty and bitterness, they knew the desire for revenge more than any other. It was that desire for revenge against the girl that made her open the door to the wing.

It was a large hall, windows down one side that were bright as sunlight streamed in. Goblins of all ages and size were in there, lounging, talking, enjoying the warmth even as they tried to mask their bitterness. In one corner, a family was packing, ready to begin their move to their new home. Clara skirted around a group of goblin children as they ran around, playing happily, totally oblivious to the way their parents watched the human girl.

"I'm looking for Xorn," Gen muttered to a small goblin female. She turned huge, frightened eyes up to the maid, taking in her scars and single, fiery eye, before running off to find the male in question. Xorn was easily half as small again as the rest of the goblins. What he lacked in height, however, he made up for in sheer dominance of personality. Amongst humans it was know as small man syndrome. Gen doubted that the goblins had a name for it.

"What do you want, human?" He demanded, paws on hips and looking as intimidating as 2' 7" of goblin can possibly look, it was all Gen could do not to laugh, though the other goblins looked impressed.

"I have something you might like to hear." She muttered, only loud enough for him to hear. "The girl, Sarah, has returned to the castle. She is living a life of luxury whilst you waste away here. The King is amusing himself with taking her on outings and introducing her to his family. He cares more about her than he does for you, he is neglecting his duty to you." The goblins gasped and a few of the mothers began to weep softly, Goblin hearing was better than she remember it being, Gen smiled inwardly. "I want to help you."

"How would you propose to help us, human?" Xorn demanded. "If it is as you say, then the King will not be distracted from her."

"He will if she is dead. Do you know of a poison, one where there is no antidote? One that is rare?" The goblins muttered amongst themselves for a while.

"There's always Ziral," one muttered.

"That one has an antidote." Xorn corrected him.

"But it's rare and as long as she gives it to the girl when the moon is a long way from full, the King will have no access to the cure." The goblin justified, his eyes shining with sincerity.

"Get some for me." Gen ordered. The little goblin bowed.

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"There you are," a husky male voice muttered behind her. Sarah squeaked and dropped the pile of towels she had been holding. She glared back at the owner of the voice then bent and began to pick them up, folding them and handing them to him to hold as she did so.

"Just because you've spent the last two weeks fraternising, with a humble maid, doesn't mean that you can undo three hours of back breaking work, Rilton." She admonished him with a smile, taking back the pile of towels.

"Giving orders to royalty now, Sarah?" He asked, also grinning and taking back a few of the towels. "Tut tut, I thought my cousin would have taught you better."

"Well he isn't around, is he?" She opened a cupboard not far from where they had been stood.

"Oh I don't know about that, Sarah," a silkier voice answered her question and she froze. Jareth was not meant to know how close they were getting. "Giving orders to royalty. It's a week in an oubliette for you, my dear." She looked up into mismatched eyes and half wished they were Rilton's. -_But only half,_- She thought and sighed.

"Don't be silly, Jareth, we were only fooling. You should try it sometime. It's more fun than tormenting the girl." Rilton defended her.

"That's what you think," Jareth smirked. Sarah's jaw dropped and she felt the blood rush to her face as the two Fae men looked at her. Both really looking at her and she could not look away.

In the end it was the armful of towels that reminded her she had work to do and she turned away from them with a little effort, putting the towels into the cupboard that one of them was now holding open for her.

"Thank you, Rilton," she muttered and turned to find Jareth glaring down at her dangerously, _his_ hand holding the door. The elf prince was on the other side of the corridor, his eyes wide and a little worried.

"You're welcome," Jareth snapped and vanished. Sarah's hand flew to her lips and she stood staring at nothing for a while until Rilton touched her shoulder. She flinched and looked at him.

"He'll get over it." He assured her. "Now I was actually looking for you for a reason," he began to pat at his doublet, today a dark green, "where did I put that?" He muttered. It took a moment and he finally pulled out what he was looking for. "Here, a little gift for putting up with a foolish Prince." He handed her a little mirror, the back was decorated with the same wolf carving as the amulet Jareth had given her and it fitted perfectly into the little pocket on the front of her apron, not that she would ever keep it there. Not that she did not like to keep track of her appearance, just that the mirror was too precious looking to use every day.

"Thank you," she whispered and pecked his cheek.

On the other side of the castle, Jareth let out a frustrated cry and threw the crystal into a wall.

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The little goblin stirred the enormous vat of clear, viscous liquid, careful not to fall in as he fished out the oddly shaped tubers and placed them in the fire, holding a cloth over his face with one paw. There had barely been enough of the strange plant in the bog to make this batch of Ziral, but it would be enough, there should be enough here to kill a Yeti, or so he hoped.

"Is it ready?" Gen walked in without knocking and the little goblin squeaked, almost falling into the vat.

"Two days, Gen, don't you know the meaning of two days?" He snapped, removing the last root as he skimmed the top with the spoon.

"Two days closer to full moon!"

"We still have two weeks, stop fretting!"

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Whispers followed her everywhere, large eyes watched her, following everywhere she went.

"It's the girl..."

"She's the one..."

"...beat the Labyrinth..."

"...destroyed our homes..." All the voices hissed maliciously. Sarah shuddered and continued to walk, eyes on the floor.

"...doesn't deserve to be here..."

"...don't deserve the King's generosity..."

"Why should she always be so..." The voices always followed her and she did her best to ignore them. But even then, things escalated.

Sarah came back to her rooms one day to find that her things had been ransacked. The little mirror that Rilton had given her lay shattered by the bed.

Sarah let out a low cry, tears rolling down her cheeks, as she fell to her knees and scrabbled around for all the pieces. She held them in front of her, the tears plinking on the glass as they fell from her cheeks, then pressing the silver cover to her chest as sobs wracked through her.

She had been so upset by the destruction, she had left the door open behind her and her sobs sounded clearly into the hallway. Gen looked in through the open door, smiled when she saw the destruction and then schooled her expression to one of concern.

"Oh, Sarah!" She exclaimed, going to the sobbing woman's side. "Goddess, Sarah, what happened?" Sarah struggled to speak through her sobs. "Come on, lets get you to the kitchen, get you some tea."

"No, I have to tidy up!" She whispered. "No please," Gen continued to pull her away.

"Get some tea in you first, calm you down a little," the tinkling of falling glass was barely noticed as Gen took the mirror casing and put it in Sarah's pocket. "Come on," Gen lead her to the kitchen, marveling at how easy this all was.

She sat Sarah in the kitchen by the fire, pouring her a cup of tea from the kettle that was stood there before adding a little of the poison, not wanting it to be too obvious but at the same time, not wanting to risk using too little, then handed the mug to her. Sarah stared into the dark liquid for a while before finally taking a few small sips. She frowned a little at the bitter, coppery taste, then drank a little more.

"Tastes funny," she murmured, before deciding to go back to her room and start to tidy up the mess that had been made. She rocked a little and spilt some of the tea on her dress, she frowned and put the mug on the table near the door, figuring that maybe carrying scalding hot tea in her current state of mind was not the best plan she had ever had. The room was swimming around her and she shook her head as everything seemed to come crashing down, then she blacked out.

_CLIFFIE! Kindness and cruelty all in one little package! (Cackles madly) R&R! You know you want to. I'm sorry that it's so short, hopefully the next chapter will be a little longer. Oh, and to all those who wanted to know what Rilton did on his drunken night... you don't want to know, you really don't! It's a sure sign of how disturbed my mind is and we will leave it at that. (Also, those who are not Supernatural fans wouldn't get why the things he did were so truly terrible). Until next time._

_Artemis_


	15. Chapter 15

_Ah, my update, as usual after a somewhat random length of time that has no baring on the various promises that I've made along the way. Thanks to yodeladyhoo, Sintar, Solea, AvitarGirl, Lurid Amaranthine, Catwoman99, Shanz, Sweetbabby33, silver.shadow.23 and draegon-fire, amazing people all of you. _

_I'm surprised at how popular Rilton has become, what with him being the love rival and all. I've even had some requests that Sarah do away with Jareth entirely and run away with Rilton. Actually that would be quite tempting, but I don't think so._

_Oh and a little warning, this chapter has knives and cutting things in it. Not overly graphic, a little bit of blood that's all, just thought you might like to be forewarned. _

Chapter Fifteen: Poison

Gen's lips curled into a smile of triumph that was quickly squashed when she saw the door begin to open. With a small, silent curse, she began shouting.

"Sarah! Oh goddess, Sarah!" She ran to the young woman's side, noticing with dismay that it was Clara who had entered the kitchen. "Sarah wake up, Sarah!" She shook her gently.

"What's going on?" Clara moved to Sarah's side with frightening speed. "Child, speak! What happened?"

"I don't know!" Gen hoped that she sounded panicked, aware of how hard it was to pull the wool over Clara's eyes. "I really don't, one minute she was drinking her tea, the next she..." Clara's dark eyes bored into her and Gen found herself trying to find ways to avoid the tiny goblin's stare.

"Get you to the King. Tell him all that you told me!" Clara snapped as the door opened again to reveal Rilton, a smile on his face and mischief in his eyes.

"Goddess! Sarah!" He went to her side and was quickly beaten away by Clara's little paws.

"Gargh! Elven Meddler!" She snapped, looking at Sarah's mug as Gen anxiously left the room. "Pass me that!" She ordered and pointed at the mug with one claw. Rilton nodded, obeying instantly and at a total loss over what to do for Sarah. Clara took the mug delicately and held it to her nose, sniffing, then let out a shrill cry and tossed it into the fire, mug and all. It burst into flame with a loud whoosh and the heat intensified for a moment before dying down again.

"Take her in your arms, Elfling, find the healer, tell him it is Ziral!" She told him, her voice high and slightly hysterical. Rilton paled and obeyed, taking the unconscious girl in his arms and vanishing.

"_Jareth_!" Clara shrieked as she made her own, painfully slow, way to the infirmary.

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Jareth was already waiting in the infirmary with the healer when Rilton arrived, his face was pale and he took Sarah from his cousin as he appeared, his mismatched eyes haunted.

"It's Ziral," Rilton gasped out to the healer who visibly paled and instructed the king to lay Sarah on the nearest bed. "Do you have any of the antidote stored?"

"No, Prince Rilton, Your Majesty, I do not," the healer smoothed back Sarah's hair, it was now stuck to her forehead with cold sweat. "It has to be made fresh, with the blood of an elf prince and the juice of the flower of Starlaces, but that only blooms under the full moon." He hung his head. "The full moon is nearly a week away."

"Can she be sustained?" Jareth asked, taking her hand in his gloved one, even as Rilton took the other, sitting at the side of her bed. The healer almost smiled at this sign of affection from both Fae, each powerful in their own right.

"I really don't..."

"Must I do all myself?" Clara said from the door. She walked over and rapped Rilton's legs with her stick until the elf stood up. Then she hopped up onto the chair and began to bark orders around her. "Healer, bring me a copper knife, Child-King, a crystal of healing energy!" She hit Rilton on the back of the head as he had begun to inch away at the mention of a copper knife. "Where think you to go, hmm? Petty Elf-Thing, thinking nothing for Sarah's pains! Get here," she pointed to the place beside her and Rilton sighed, Jareth simply smirked as he held the golden crystal out to his dearest friend and advisor. Clara used a claw to score a line around the top, then carefully, painfully carefully, removed the small bit of crystal at the top, opening it briefly, and then replacing the little cap as quickly as it had opened, waiting on the copper knife.

"I really don't like copper knives," Rilton muttered, "they're used to extract blood from royalty for spells and the like. Do you know what blood like mine is worth?"

"For Sarah? Life." Clara informed him and the healer returned with the knife, handing it to her. Clara looked up at him, her giant eyes dark and closed. "Trust me, Tree-Hopper?" She asked softly. Rilton choked a little on her choice of name, but nodded and rolled up his sleeve before holding his arm out to her. Clara drew a dainty line across his wrist and flicked the cap off the crystal with her claw, holding it under the wound. Rilton tipped his arm so that a measure of his blood dripped into the crystal. The ball changed colour as the magic within it and the blood mixed, turning dark, vibrant, green. Clara flicked his arm once with the knife, indicating that she had enough and began to stir the odd mix with the knife. It went from green, to blue, a blue that was the same colour as one of Jareth's eyes, and became a thin liquid.

"Raise her head!" She ordered, the healer hesitated, this was very ancient, very dangerous magic, he was not sure if he wanted it practiced in his infirmary. Sarah cried out, her eyes opening, glazed with pain and fever. "Do it now or she will die!" Jareth let go of Sarah's hand and did as he was told, Clara touched the crystal vessel to Sarah's lips. "Drink it, Child, drink it all," she hissed. After several, agonising moments Sarah obeyed, drinking until all of the liquid was gone. Clara hopped off the stool, whacking Rilton once about the legs for good measure as he inched away, and threw the crystal into the fire that burnt on the other side of the room.

"Is she cured?" Jareth asked, his voice trembling slightly.

"No, this is ancient magic, it will sustain her, I cannot cure her. For that you will need the Starlace, and this one," she poked the Elf Prince again, "will have to remain here. This same process must be repeated every day." Jareth nodded, silent.

"There's two things bothering me." Rilton muttered then.

"Only two?" Jareth smirked at his cousin.

"Make that three," Rilton amended. Jareth raised and eyebrow. "First: _you_." Jareth shrugged.

"What's new and different about that?" He asked.

"Fair point. Two: who would do this? And three: where did they get the poison? This stuff was outlawed."

"Four:" Jareth pointed out, "and most important: _why_ would anyone do this?" Clara ambled around the bed and hit him on the knee with her stick. "What was that for?" He asked, glaring at her.

"Couldn't reach your fool head, Boy. Why ask you foolish questions? Who is she?"

"She's Sarah," it was Rilton's turn to get hit with the stick again. "That's getting really old, really fast," he muttered. Clara pulled a face and ignored him.

"She's the girl who beat the Labyrinth, the one who destroyed city and castle. There you have 'why'." She shook her head, "I raised an idiot." She mumbled. "The poison is made from the roots of a plant found _where_, King-Boy?"

"The bog!"

"So now we have only two questions and both connected. Who _made_ it and who _gave _it?"

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Jareth appeared in Clara's study, not bothering to knock and wait for her permission to enter, not needing to because he was king. The ancient goblin as sitting at her desk, a giant book in front of her, her large eyes intent upon it's pages. He cleared his throat and she looked up at him, scratching at one tiny ear with her claws before closing the book and gesturing for him to sit, which he did. She looked at him with sad eyes for a long while before finally speaking.

"Why are you here, hmmm?" Jareth met her gaze, not taking his eyes from hers.

"How did you know what to do? That is ancient magic, Clara. Not even _I_ am allowed to practice that." She showed him sharp teeth, a smile of sorts.

"I was ancient the day that your father was born, King Jareth. I learnt from my mother, as she learnt from hers. We keep the old arts alive because no other will. Does it not please you this day we did this?" She kept her tone neutral, seeing that Jareth was worried by her answer.

Jareth rubbed a gloved hand across his chin, his eyes distant as he thought.

Technically he should have Clara locked away and readied for trial, with a sentence of beheading for practicing the forbidden arts, but he needed that magic to keep Sarah alive until the Starlaces bloomed. Once Sarah was safe, he could hardly have the goblin arrested, what she had done had saved Sarah's life and he was many things, but not a hypocrite. He would not arrest Clara for something that he was now going to use to his advantage.

"This has put me in a very awkward position, Clara," he told her, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Rilton will stay quiet, but the healer..."

"Will understand, as do I.. Deal with me as you must once Sarah is well." He took her tiny paw in his hand.

"I won't let anything happen to you," he vowed.

"Don't be a fool!" She hissed. "Don't jeopardise your kingdom for me!"

"I won't," he laughed, the sound a little forced. "I have a visit to make."

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Sarah lay in the bed and stared up at the ceiling, her mind racing as she tried to sleep. Tried and failed. She could not understand who would want to hurt her, who could possibly want to poison her? She dredged through her mind, terrified at how hard it was to form a coherent thought with any ease. What had the poison done to her? She began to panic, the worst part was that the healer had told her that she was not out of the woods yet. Her breath began to come in ragged gasps, tears streamed from her eyes, yet nobody came. She was ignored as she struggled to breathe, the light of the room around her fading in and out as the oxygen she craved failed to get into her lungs.

Then strong arms were around her, lifting her into a sitting position and mumbling meaningless nonsense in her ears. Her breathing slowed and the tears dried, finally she opened her eyes fully to see who had pulled her from her waking nightmare.

Rilton grinned at her a little sheepishly, and she managed a watery smile before he lay her back down again. One long delicate hand took her work worn one in a tight grip and he smiled, squeezing gently.

"You need to stay calm, Sarah," he told her, his voice soft and full of caring that she could not identify. "We'll keep you safe. Nothing will happen to you."

The groggy, half formed thought in her mind was to ask who the other person was that would protect her. But she found that as she moved her lips, nothing came out. Rilton pressed her hand to his lips, kissing the knuckle.

"Healer doesn't think that you'll be able to talk for a day or so." He smirked. "All the better for us, actually." He touched her cheek with his other hand and the small part of her mind that still functioned shouted that it was wrong. That Rilton should not be treating her like an injured lover. But the part of her mind that was still groggy from the poison racing through her, awed at his touch, yet craved the touch of another. She glanced at the door, saw Jareth stood there, smiled and turned her eyes back to Rilton

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Jareth walked into the infirmary, spirits sunk desperately low as he considered all that he would have to do and all the risks that he would have to take, to protect both Clara and Sarah. As long as the poison ran through her, Sarah was in danger of a relapse. She would need to be kept calm at all times and be watched like a hawk. The one thing that could raise Jareth's spirits from the deep pit that they had sunk into would be that this time would be a good time to talk to her. A good time to try and explain his past actions to her. He could finally get to know her properly and understand why this woman had come to him as such a vain, spoilt little girl. The idea lifted his spirits slightly and he reached for the handle, pushing the door gently open, expecting to see Sarah alone, afraid and lonely.

Jareth stood in the open door and watched as Rilton squeezed Sarah's hand, as he spoke soft words to her. He watched Rilton kiss the back so Sarah's hand, his every movement like he was touching something made of glass. Then he watched Rilton trail his hand down Sarah's cheek, her smile, the way she turned her head to see him stood in the door. Her tiny little smile as she turned her attention back to his cousin.

Jareth watched the little scene unfold, feeling his heart sinking in his chest, feeling the leaden weight that had lifted in the last five months return with a vengeance. Silent, he closed the door and left them alone.

It was not until after he was gone that Rilton turned to see what Sarah had been smiling at, noticed the faint scent of Jareth's magic in the air and knew that he had been watching. He simply shrugged and turned his attention back to Sarah, certain that his cousin would want to visit her alone and that he would return again later.

_How dense are these two?? No wonder Clara likes to hit them with sticks! _I'd_ hit them with sticks, I mean _really_! Wait, I did hit them with sticks, I wrote it. Never mind. How stupid is Rilton? How can he not think that Jareth might be just a little jealous? As always I aske that you please, pretty please R&R, they're so much fun._

_Artemis_


	16. Chapter 16

_Oh my God! 125 reviews! I'm so happy, you guys are all amazing! Thank yous go out to: Mint Tea Rose, Oni queen, AndoraStorm, fireshifter, enchantednight84, Sintar, ScarlethasPheonixpower, Sweetbabby33, draegon-fire, Solea, notwritten, FaeriesMidwife, forward-but-sincere-pirate, yodeladyhoo and AvitarGirl. Once again, you have brought a little light to my life, you make it worth the hours of writting. _

_Now I know that you all wanted a major confrontation between Jareth and Gen, or Rilton, but it won't be for another chapter or two yet. Don't panic, it is coming._

Chapter Sixteen: Waiting.

Sarah opened her eyes and looked around her, trying to figure out where she was and how she had gotten there. It took several moments of thought for her to remember what had happened. She tried to sit up and found, once again, that her body would not obey her commands. A snort from nearby startled her, and Sarah turned her head with a little difficulty. Jareth was in one of the chairs by the bed, his head rested on one hand, the elbow on the arm of the chair he sat in. He snorted again and Sarah knew that he would be uncomfortable when he woke.

"Your Majesty," she whispered, trying to get his attention.

"Hush, Sarah," the healer came over and helped her into an upright position, proping her up with pillows. "The King did not fall asleep until a few hours ago."

"He's been here all night?"

"Since just after you fell asleep and Prince Rilton left. I'll fetch you some breakfast." He left her to sit, immobile, staring out of the window as she waited for him to return and probably feed it to her. She sighed and looked back at Jareth, silently realising that her head was the only part of her body that she now had any conscious control of.

Jareth looked so innocent, so peaceful, as he slept, it was hard for her to believe that this Fae was able to be so intimidating. It was even harder to believe that he was capable of taking children, or being so cruel. She watched him until the healer returned with her food and began to feed her. She barely noticed the taste, happier to watch Jareth sleep than eat the nearly tasteless porridge that the healer had brought her.

It was not until some time later that Jareth groggily opened his eyes, looking straight at her in a moment of sleepy confusion. She smiled gently, tried to raise her hand in greeting and failed.

"Morning," she whispered instead, blushing slightly at getting caught watching. If he noticed the blush, he did not mention it, a soft smile playing about his lips as he looked at her. Then his eyes went suddenly flat as he looked at the infirmary door. Sarah followed his gaze until she saw who he was looking at and she laughed, delighted with her new visitor.

"Rilton," Jareth's voice was scarily cold as he greeted his cousin, yet Rilton ignored it, taking the seat on the other side of Sarah's bed and squeezing her hand in greeting. Jareth watched them for a moment as Rilton made a light jibe and Sarah gave a snide answer, then seeing that his continued presence was not required he stood, stretching and wincing at the pulL of muscles that had cramped into his odd position. "I'll see you later, Sarah." He told her as he walked away.

"Where are you going?" She asked in reply, looking away from Rilton to turn her questioning eyes on him.

"I have a kingdom to run." Jareth reminded her, a little aloof. She simply nodded and looked away from him, back to Rilton. He sighed and vanished, leaving Sarah and a very confused Rilton alone together.

"What's gotten into him this morning?" He asked Sarah, his molten chocolate eyes searching. "You didn't say something to him before I got here?"

"No, nothing." She shook her head. "He's been in that chair all night apparently. Maybe he needed to stretch out the kinks."

"Maybe..." Rilton did not look convinced, but turned his attention back to Sarah and let his cousin's odd mood drift from his mind. It would not be the first time that Jareth had behaved oddly in the last three hundred years, and it probably would not be the last either.

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Later that afternoon, Clara appeared, Jareth in tow and repeated her actions of the day before. Sarah watched, fascinated as the little goblin worked. But when Clara approached her with the crystal and tried to get her to drink it, she turned her head away. Jareth raised his eyebrows, but did not speak as Clara once again put the crystal to Sarah's lips.

"I can't," Sarah whispered, "I'm sorry," she felt her stomach beginning to reject her lunch and she turned her head away so that the goblin matron would not see.

"But why not?" Rilton demanded as Clara scowled. Jareth kept his face blank, not wanting to antagonise her further. Sarah looked at Rilton's arm, the knife wound still seeping blood, her eyes fixed on the ruby drops, and Clara understood.

"It is life, Sarah-Child, without this you will die, is that what you wish? Truly?" Jareth felt something contract around his heart, if she rejected the treatment he would have to watch her die. Sarah blinked and processed what Clara had just told her, then glanced once at Jareth and then looked back with a nod. The crystal of blue liquid was again put to her lips and she drank deeply, her eyes on Rilton's arm the whole time.

When she was done, Clara hopped down from the stool and once again threw the crystal in the fire, then she wandered away, muttering quietly to herself.

"Rilton, will you get that damn arm looked at?" Jareth snapped at his cousin, acutely aware of what Sarah was staring at. Rilton blushed and stalked away, also muttering. Jareth watched him go, not looking at Sarah until he heard her voice.

"Jareth," she whispered his name, her voice slightly tentative.

"Yes, Sarah?" He had felt a momentary rush of pleasure at the way his name had sounded when she said it.

"How...how does Ziral work? How does it kill you?" Icy fear surrounded him. He could not tell her, it would be terrible for her to contemplate.

"It's a poison," he replied, hoping that it would be all she needed.

"I know _that_," she sounded exasperated. "Rilton and Healer Ades told me _that_, but they won't tell me _how_. They think it'll upset me."

"It will,"

"Tell me anyway? Please?"

"Why know how you would have died? You're going to live, shouldn't that be all that matters?"

"No."

"It's a fast acting poison, it passes into your system the instant it hits your stomach, we don't really know why. It... it paralyzes you. Legs, arms, torso, then it starts on your organs and all of this it does in a matter of hours. It's slow and it is painful. When they coined agony, this poison is what they had in mind."

"And someone chose this for me. Someone decided to use this on me?"

"I'm sorry."

"But why? I mean, what have I done?" Tears welled up in her emerald eyes.

"There are many who wish you dead, Sarah. Revenge for what you did, whether deliberate or not, many Goblins lost their home. I lost my castle and my wife..." He trailed off. "If we are lucky, she still doesn't know that you're here yet." He muttered darkly. He realised he had made a mistake when Sarah stopped crying and glared at him.

"And there she is again! Your damn wife!" Sarah looked away from him. "Just go, I need to rest." Once again she had shut herself off from him, he knew, then, that they would have to discuss this at a later date. Sarah could not be allowed to continue using Marissa as ammunition for their arguments.

Her eyes were closed and were it not for the tight lines about her lips, she would almost have looked peaceful. He sighed and left the room on foot as Rilton came back over, watching Jareth leave with a small frown. He had heard the conversation and he knew that it had upset them both, not just Sarah. The problem would be getting her to see it.

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The next day flowed smoothly, Sarah was fed breakfast, Jareth managed to avoid insulting her, in fact he barely said two words to her and Rilton bought her tales of the lesser nobles, all of whom were convinced that the poison had been meant for them and that her tasting the food had saved them from an unfortunate and rather painful end. When it had later emerged that the tea had been poured from the Queen's personal pot, Marissa had declared that she wanted to thank the girl who had exposed the potential poisoning herself. When Rilton had told her that, Sarah had choked on her tea.

When he was not supervising Clara's use of ancient magic, Jareth had a kingdom to run and a poisoning to investigate. He was finding it hard to concentrate, however, knowing that Rilton was alone with Sarah, talking to her and laughing with her. He envied him that, and he hurt with knowing that he could not interact with Sarah in the same way, however much he wanted to.

After three days, things went wrong.

Jareth had made no progress with his investigations. He was simply too distracted and he decided that he had to get Rilton away from Sarah for long enough to give him some peace of mind. He conjured a crystal, sent a brief message to his cousin and sat back in his chair to think, because if he thought abut it, he had no reason being jealous of Rilton, Sarah was his, he could keep her here for as long as he wanted, he could keep Rilton away. But this was not something that he wanted to do. So as Rilton walked through the study door, he decided that it was time they went and looked into the poisoning, together. That way Sarah was not alone with either of them.

By the time they got back to the castle, night was falling. Their investigation in the city had lead to nothing. None of the goblins there had known anything of the plot and most of them were horrified to think that one of the Taken had been targeted. Neither Jareth, or Rilton had bothered to mention Sarah's name, knowing that the goblins would refuse to help, even with Jareth's direct orders.

They had both collapsed in chairs in Jareth's study, exhausted by a day of walking and frustration, both of them dirty. Mud, dust and general grime stuck all over them, they were a far cry from the usually immaculate Fae that most people knew. They fell into a light doze and Rilton was disturbed when Jareth suddenly sat bolt upright. The Goblin King frowned, his eyes narrowed in thought, as he tried to bring to mind something he was certain he had forgotten. It did not take long.

"Goddess! Sarah!" He shouted, standing so fast that the chair he was sat in fell backwards. Rilton yawned, dozy and wanting to go back to his nap.

"What about her?" He asked, not quite processing what Jareth was trying to say.

"We haven't been here, she hasn't had the potion!" Jareth's face took on an expression of horror. "We have to get to the infirmary now." Rilton's face had gone a worrying shade of grey when it finally dawned on him what his cousin had been saying. They both disappeared in a flurry of glitter, taking themselves to the infirmary.

Sarah lay in her bed, her back arched and her eyes wide, her mouth open in a silent scream of agony.

"No one knows where they are," Ades wrung his hands as he spoke to Clara, "they haven't been able to find them all day. Xorn said that he had looked everywhere!" He spotted Jareth and Rilton, both looking a little the worse for wear. "Your Majesty!" Jareth went straight to Sarah's side, his face a mask of calm, yet his eyes were screaming and pleading with the healer to do something for her. Clara did not speak, did not move, she simply stood there, trembling with suppressed fury. Rilton had picked up the copper knife and was stood next to the healer, waiting for Clara.

For a long moment, no one said or did anything. Then Sarah relaxed back into the bed, barely breathing and it seemed to snap Clara back to reality. She made a gesture to Jareth and he conjured a gold crystal, placing it in her waiting paws. Rilton pulled the knife across his arm and dripped blood into the now open crystal. Clara did not speak, did not meet their eyes, she worked in total silence, simply gesturing when she had enough of Rilton's blood.

It was not until after Sarah had drunk the liquid and the fits had stopped that Clara finally spoke. She looked over at Jareth and Rilton, both hovering nervously, as she smoothed Sarah's damp hair from her face with a gentle paw.

"Get _out_!" Any sign of age in her voice was gone. It had been replaced with icy fury, cold and terrible. "_Now_, both of you." Jareth waited for her to strike them with her cane, but the blow did not come and he realised in that moment that he had crossed that unmentioned line. Both Fae withdrew, knowing the futility of trying to reason with the enraged goblin.

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Clara was not calm enough to speak to Jareth about what had happened until the next day, and even then, the warmth that usually coloured her voice was gone. Any respect for the person that he had become seemed to have vanished.

"You forgot her," she commented, not waiting for excuses. Jareth shok his head.

"No."

"_Yes_! Whatever you were doing, be it for her benefit or not, you _forgot_ her."

"I was investigating..."

"Oh, that makes it all better does it, hmm?" Her paws clenched around her stick and Jareth actually found himself hoping that she would hit him with it a few times and have done with it. "Sarah nearly _died_ but it's _fine_ because you were _investigating_." He could see gouges appearing in the knobbly wood where her claws were digging in.

"You can't blame all this on me!"

"Yes I can. The girl is depending on you to _live_. Goddess forbid that interferes with your selfish little plans." Clara struck the stone floor with the base of the stick.

"_Selfish_?"

"Yes, _selfish_, all must give way for what you want. Revenge, happiness, _love_." She turned away from him, shaking her head. Then hobbled out of the room, now unable to look at him.

Her every word had struck Jareth like a knife. The agony of knowing that he had disappointed his closest friend and mentor so, cut into his heart. He knew that Sarah, too, would blame him and that cut deeper still.

With a scream of rage and pain, Jareth swept everything off his desk, upturning it with a mighty heave. Then he started on the bookcases and the chairs. He did not stop until the whole room was in tatters.

_Silly Jareth, but he's all miserable and unhappy, don't you all just love it. Jareth just had to do something monumentally stupid and we had to see the line where Clara goes from slightly annoyed to incredibly annoyed. Little bit of a filler chapter, what with Sarah's relapse and all,but it had to be done. Please R&R, I'll update as soon as I can, Thursday at the earliest and if not it won't be until Monday, I've got a busy weekend babysiting._

_Artemis_


	17. Chapter 17

_Alright here you all go! One update, because your amazing response has inspired me to write faster than I thought I could, I'm now at 144 reviews! I'm awed and humbled. My thanks to Mint Tea Rose, Smallishbadger, Kenseikan weirdo, LabyLvrPhx, fireshifter, enchantednight84, silver.shadow.23, ScarlethasPheonixpower, sweetbabby33, GaidsGirl, Sintar, mokosh, notwritten, Spitfire21, AvitarGirl, yodeladyhoo, draegon-fire, rose217. Thank you all, you've made this easier. _

Chapter Seventeen: Full Moon.

The full moon came with a sense of relief for Jareth. Within a couple of hours everything would be over, Sarah would be on her way to a complete recovery and Jareth could again leave the castle to continue his investigation into her poisoning. He had not seen her properly since the incident four days ago. Ades and Clara had made it clear that neither he nor Rilton were welcome unless they were helping to make to the potion that was keeping Sarah alive. Sarah, on the other hand, seemed to be unaware that her relapse had been anything to do with either of them. She had asked Jareth to stay with her one day after she had taken her potion and he had almost agreed, but had seen the way that Ades had glared at him and backed away, using his position as King and his need to find the poisoner as an excuse. He could not deny that she had been hurt by his refusal to stay, she had begun to accept him, to treat him as a friend, since she had been confined to the infirmary.

Jareth had to be honest with himself as he walked through the hidden garden in the centre of the castle, he had been happy when he had been sitting and talking to her. Her mind was quick, and despite some of the things that she had said to him, it was open. The one thing that they had not discussed was the one thing that was keeping the wedge firmly between them being friends and him getting his wish. They never talked about Marissa. He never once explained the things she had done, or why he did not and could not love her. He was not happy, however, with how close she had gotten to Rilton. She had only asked Jareth to stay with her once. She had asked Rilton to stay with her everyday.

The Starlaces were blooming in the moon light, a soft glow coming from their petals. They were truly beautiful and he reached out with his gloved hands to caress the petals, then he took a small knife from inside the jacket he was wearing and began to cut through the stems. He cut seven and placed them inside his jacket, careful not to damage the flowers and looked back at the pond they grew beside. The water was clear and he could just see the tiny water sprites swimming there. A tiny female popped her head out of the water, then climbed up one of the cut stems and grinned at him, before taking a small handful of the sap that had leaked out, nibbling delicately. He watched as other sprites joined her, attracted by the sweet sap that dripped into the water, chittering and laughing, and he felt the worries in his heart lift a little. Despite all of the worry and fear that he had been experiencing in the last week, just seeing that some of his subjects were benefitting from his cares was comforting.

He watched the sprites for a few moments longer before he made his way back up to the infirmary, a small smile playing on his lips.

"Should I be pleased to see you smile?" A female voice asked, he recognised it and felt his heart sink. He had avoided her for so long, why now? When he was so close to ending Sarah's agony, why did Marissa have to approach him now?

"This smile is not for you, Marissa," he snapped back, the smile disappearing quickly. She laughed, a sound that from any other woman would have been beautiful. From Marissa, anything beautiful was wrong. Even her physical beauty was wrong, her long, glossy black hair was just that shade darker than Sarah's and whilst Jareth loved the way that Sarah's hair moved, looked and felt, nothing in the Underground would get him to touch Marissa's.

"Is the smile for the pathetic woman who sought to take my glory? Is it for the one who thought to win your favour by saving my life?"

"You think too much of yourself, Marissa. All of the maids know that I can't wait to divorce you." He brushed past her, rude and not really caring. "I have better things to do than to waste my time talking to you." He said as he continued down the hall. Marissa watched him leave, a scowl on her face and murder in her heart.

Jareth continued into the infirmary, his earlier light mood gone after such a brief encounter with his wife. He was scowling when he entered the large suite and Ades looked at him in concern. He shrugged and handed the healer four of the flowers before going to Sarah's bed side. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder and she opened her eyes, having slept most of the day so that she would be ready. Jareth pulled the last three Starlaces from inside his jacket and handed them to her. Sarah's eyes went wide and she took them in silence, staring up at Jareth as Rilton entered the room, rubbing his eyes sleepily and with an irritated Clara by his leg. She turned as she heard the door open and the smile that Sarah shot in their direction lit up the room. Jareth's heart sank, she had never smiled that way for him, he was beginning to think that she never would.

"Prince Rilton," Ades came over from where he had been grinding up the flowers, "I need to take your contribution to the cure." Rilton winced and nodded.

"Just give me a moment, healer," he replied, making his way over to Sarah's bed. He touched a finger to the Starlaces that Sarah still held and smiled. "Beautiful aren't they? Are you ready?"

"Of course I am! Don't ask such stupid questions, Rilton, I desperate to get out of this bed." He laughed and kissed the back of her hand. Jareth expected her to blush, but she simply glared at him with a mock scowl. "Flirt! Go on, Ades is glaring." They shared a laugh and Rilton did as he was told, Sarah noticed Jareth's scowl and looked away, not wanting to believe she had seen what she thought she had in Jareth's eyes.

A little while later, Rilton returned, his forearm covered in a bandage. He smiled weakly, though he looked a little pale, and sat next to her, taking the flowers and putting them behind him so that he could take both of her hands in his, ignoring the way that Jareth was glaring at him, then looked over to the healer who was now coming over to the bed, a goblet in his hand.

The goblet was made of silver and was so large that it took both of the healer's hands to keep it steady. They could see the liquid in the goblet as Ades lowered it to Sarah's lips. It glowed a brilliant gold, the sap of the Starlaces making the mixture shine with an almost unearthly brilliancy in the candle lit room. The mixture reflected it's light in Sarah's eyes as she took a sip, then pulled her head away and gagged. It was unbelievably salty, sour and left the after taste of rotting flesh in her mouth.

"Drink it all."

"You've got to be kidding me!" She swallowed to stop herself from vomiting and glared at Ades.

"I didn't give all of that blood for you to reject my gift, Sarah." Rilton reminded her.

"Have you tried it? I dare you to try it. I think I would rather die than drink that!"

"You don't have that option, Sarah. Rilton is not your king, you do not have to obey him. I _am_ and you will obey me. You will drink it all if I have to strap you down and pour it down your throat!" Sarah glared at Jareth, then nodded to Ades and obediently drank the rest of the antidote down. Her eyes closed almost instantly and her head lolled forward.

"She will sleep now. I will call you when she wakes."

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Sarah woke and lay still, she hurt all over and her mouth tasted like something had died in it. She was also still paralyzed from the neck down and she muttered something colourful, heard approaching voices, and fell silent. She saw her hand lifted as Ades checked her pulse, but did not feel it and she frowned, knowing he would see it even if he was only visible out of the corner of her eye.

"How do you feel?" He asked as he sat her up.

"Like I've been hit by a bus." She muttered and he laughed. "I'm glad that someone finds this funny."

"As am I." Jareth was leant in the door, arms folded across his chest and the scowl on his face was blacker than hers. "Why can she not move." If Sarah had not known better, she could have sworn that she saw Ades role his eyes.

"The poison was in her system for a long time, it will take a while for her to regain full control of her body, and that's under normal circumstances. We also have her little relapse to worry about. It will take longer, maybe two weeks, maybe a month. I can't be sure.

"But I will get full control back, won't I?"

"I hope so, it's too early to say." Sarah decided that healers deserved to go to the same place as doctors. She hated doctors and their "lets wait and see" attitude. Most of the time she just wanted to know if something was going to work.

"I meant to ask what caused that relapse," she muttered instead. Jareth looked distinctly uncomfortable. "It's your fault," she twigged and he fidgeted a little. "So you did what? Forgot?" Her voice was quiet, she did not have the energy to shout or fight. All she wanted to do was eat and sleep, in that order.

"Rilton and I... we got caught up in our investigation." He offered as an excuse, worried she was about to start screaming.

"Oh," she said simply, then slowly, painfully slowly, turned her head so that she could look at Ades. "I think I'd like some breakfast now."

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Jareth wandered around the castle, thinking. He knew that this plot would have needed a goblin to work, very few knew how to brew Ziral, and fewer still knew where to find the root that it was made of. His investigation had hit a dead end. Apparently, none of the goblins, or the maids knew anything. At this moment in time he was probably more upset that his subjects were lying to him than that one of them had tried to poison Sarah. It was now a week after she had woken up and she was wriggling fingers and toes, his anger over her condition had been pushed to the back. The first thing he wanted to deal with was the goblin who had made the potion, the next was to find out who he had done it for and then after that, who had used it.

He muttered as he changed direction and made his way down one of the more shabby corridors. He paused every now and then to touch the walls and wonder why water was dripping down them. Finally he reached the door he was looking for. In this room would be most of the potions masters, and, hopefully, the five among them who knew how to brew Ziral would be there too. He paused inside the door and waited until the noise subsided. The occupants of the room seemed to turn as one and looked at him, before grinning and continuing to make the most incredible of noises. Jareth gritted his teeth and took a deep breath.

"_Silence_!" He roared. All noise and activity ceased, the goblins all huddled into a trembling mass. "Why me?" He muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose, then he let his hand fall and glared down at the quivering mass. "I want all who can make Ziral to step forward." He ordered. There was nervous shuffling and five goblins stepped out of the group, wary and a little sheepish. He recognised all of them, trouble makers amongst the potion brewers, of that there could be no doubt. "My study." He gestured and they followed, behind them, the revelry began again.

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Jareth paced his study, glancing every now and then at the five master goblins. Each time his mismatched eyes swept over them, they trembled and he allowed himself a small smile. One of the five evidently saw more to it than there was and he began to tremble harder.

"Is there a problem, Maril?" He asked the tiny creature. The goblin shook harder and he realised that he had found is culprit. "The rest of you can leave. Maril, you will remain here. You and I have a great deal to discuss." His amused grin was replaced by a feral one and sat down at his desk, still staring at the little goblin. Maril continued to shake, the trembles becoming more pronounced until his knees gave out from under him and he collapsed on the floor. "Ziral, Maril?" He questioned. The goblin looked up at him, his eyes large and watery.

"I... I... I'm sorry, Your Majesty," he stuttered, curling up into a ball by the fireplace. Jareth inwardly cringed, he would get little from the goblin in this state.

"'Sorry'? Maril, you are guilty of attempting to poison one of the Taken. That is a crime punishable by death." He kept his manner cold, haughty, almost enjoying the goblin's fear. "So tell me, who told you to do this?" He stood and walked over to glare down at the shaking heap. "Was it my wife? Tell me and I will consider lessening your punishment."

"It... it was not the Queen. It was..." he curled up into a smaller ball.

"_Who was it_?" His tone was dangerous and his eyes glinted in fury. They remained as they were for a long time before Maril's fear of his king won out over his fear of the person who had ordered him to make the poison.

"Xorn, he ordered me to make it. But it was... one of the Taken, who came to us with the idea. Majesty, please! I swear to you that it's the truth. Xorn gave the order! It was the scarred one of the Taken." He groveled before his king, his paw like hands clasped together. Jareth thought for a moment. The average goblin did not have the wits to lie to their king, or to make it convincing. There was only one of the Taken that he knew of that had a face the way the goblin had described. He summoned a crystal.

"Torel," he felt his steward respond. "Bring the maid Gen to my study, and have the guard also come to take a prisoner to the dungeons." He turned away from the pathetic creature and went to sit at his desk, picking up a dagger and toying with it while he waited. A knock on the door told him that Torel and the goblin guards had arrived and he used a crystal to open the door. His magic would intimidate Gen, he could sense her behind the door, and it would also demonstrate to the pathetic thing that was still groveling on the floor, that he could not hide from his king.

Jareth had been correct. Torel was holding one of Gen's arms, the scarred woman was looking decidedly worried by his display of power. Behind the two, were three Higher Goblin guards. These were taller, smarter, faster goblins, ones who knew how to take orders and not mess them up. They were not as smart as your normal Fae, nor were they as fast, but they were enough and Miral did not even try to resist as they lead him away.

"Gen, sit," Jareth gestured with the dagger, "you can go, Torel. I will call when I need you." The steward showed a little reluctance to leave for a few minutes and hesitated for a long moment before finally turning and leaving. Jareth sat and stared at Gen, his mismatched eyes drilling into her. The maid shifted uncomfortably, feeling like he was trying to get into her mind, her eye darting around, trying to look anywhere that was not Jareth. "Gen..." he purred, the woman shuddered and he let a swift smile pass across his face. "...tell me why."

_So Gen finally got caught, but what will Jareth do with her? Will he and Sarah ever talk about her little relapse? I'll update after the weekend, my thanks again to all of those who reviewed, I'm still amazed at the response I've been getting. Please continue to R&R, it means a lot to me._

_Artemis._


	18. Chapter 18

_Ok, so this was actually quite a hard chapter to write, mostly because I was babysitting at the time. Two young boys plus dogs does not equal a good writting environment. On the plus side I've now got some time off work in which to write. On the down side I am once again going away for a week so I'm not entirely sure when I will be able to update. My thanks go out to: yodeladyhoo, LabyLvrPhx, silver.shadow.23, AvitarGirl, rose217 Solea, notwritten, Re-o-ko, Catwoman99, Mint Tea Rose, sweetbabby33, ScarlethasPheonixpower, draegon-fire, inksmudged and CartoonOni. You humble me._

Chapter Eighteen: Punishment

It was quite some time later when Jareth made his way to the infirmary, his face grave and his eyes distant. He did not want to tell Sarah what he had learnt that day, at the same time he knew that he had to. Sarah had a right to know that in punishing Gen, Jareth was going to be putting her in further danger, he would be drawing Marissa's attention to Sarah's presence in the castle. He almost wanted her permission.

Sarah seemed to sense his serious mood as he entered because she muttered something to Rilton, who glanced once at Jareth and vanished. The Goblin King nodded, approving of Rilton leaving, not wanting the elf to hear who had tried to poison Sarah before they had a chance to discuss it.

"How are you feeling?" He was delighted to see her shrug.

"I've been worse." He nodded and they fell silent, each looking in every direction except at each other. Eventually, Sarah looked at him, studying him for a moment before speaking again. "What's wrong?"

"We have a problem, more, _I_ have a problem. I know who poisoned you, but to punish her, I have to tell Marissa that you're here."

"I thought she already knew?"

"Apparently not."

"So who poisoned me?"

"Gen," his voice was barely audible. Sarah was silent. "Say something?"

"What do you want me to say? 'Oh well, never mind'?"

"Of course not. Don't you even want to know why?"

"She doesn't like me, I know that much. Who knows, maybe for her that was reason enough?"

"No, there was more to it. I'm sorry, Sarah," he took her hand, "this is going to upset you. There is no way for me to tell you without causing you some pain." To his surprise she did not remove her hand, but he could see her confusion. "You've been through so much already."

"I'm not that fragile, I beat you, remember?"

"I remember, so does Gen." She tilted her head and he sighed before continuing, trying to pull his mask around him as he spoke. "She was Marissa's maid whilst you were running the Labyrinth. Her scars, her lost eye, they are the result of you winning," _-winning my heart, Sarah, not the game, my heart. My little gift, the ballroom and our dance, my song.-_ "Marissa did not take to kindly to it. She took her frustration out on Gen." Sarah's eyes had filled with tears. "She seemed to think that killing you would be a fitting revenge."

"And you didn't do anything?" Tears filled her eyes. "It's all my fault. I won and it's all my fault. What happened to her is my fault!" The tears fell. "Why didn't you help her?"

"I had other things on my mind at the time, Sarah. As I recall, the castle and the city had crumbled into dust by the time your little victory party was over, the face of one of the Taken was not among my most pressing thoughts!" He touched her cheek with his free hand, the leather of his ever present gloves warm on her cheek, her tears soaking into the soft black as they slid over his finger tips. "None of this is your fault. It is my own that I cannot control my own wife, my own that I did not deal with the injuries of all of those she mistreated as I did with Toya." His voice was soft, if a little bitter. "I have to punish Gen, Sarah. I have to do it publicly."

"'Publicly'? But why?"

"Because she attacked one of the Taken, she attacked _you_. She used Ziral. I cannot tolerate any of this. But it means that I will have to tell Marissa that you have returned."

"She can't hurt me."

"You don't know that."

"As long as I have Rilton... as long as you're here. She won't." Jareth felt a stab of jealousy when she mentioned Rilton first, but pushed it aside, hearing her confidence in him when she spoke.

"I cannot always protect you, and Rilton needs to return home soon. Sarah..."

"I don't want revenge against her, Jareth."

"I know, but I have to be seen to be king. I have to over rule you here. But you need to know..."

"I'll look out for myself." Her tone was very miserable. "Go and play king." She turned away, not responding to the small kiss that he dared to place on the back of her hand.

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Jareth knocked on Marissa's door before entering, half hoping that he would catch her in bed with one of the minor nobles and be rid of her quickly. Unfortunately, his luck never seemed to run that way. In actuality, he caught her half way through a raging hissy fit, her eyes narrow and her hands in the air, her maid cowered in one corner of the room and was surrounded by destroyed porcelain and china. Jareth scowled at the scene before him, then ducked as Marissa threw a glass at the open door. When he stood again, the rage on his face was clear and the maid in the corner began to sob even harder.

"That is _enough_, Marissa!" He took hold of his wife's wrists and pulled her round to face him. Her eyes flashed dangerously before she backed down, wrenching herself from his grasp and glaring at him for just a second before her meek mask slid into place. "We need to talk."

"About _Sarah_?" She snapped. "Just when were you going to tell me that she was back?" The fairy woman flounced over to a chair and flopped down, waving a hand at the anxious maid. The girl hurried forward, pausing only to pour Marissa a glass of wine, handed it to her mistress and vanished into the servants passages.

"When it became necessary. It was not before. Who told you?"

"One of your filthy goblins. Xorn I think his name was." She shrugged. "They all look alike to me anyway." Jareth sighed. Dealing with Marissa when he was in a good mood was never easy, dealing with her now when all he wanted was sleep and a half decent meal was another matter entirely.

"Xorn?" He should have known that it would be the little wretch, he was a trouble maker and had thus far managed to elude Jareth's attempts to find him. "I should have known."

"I hear that one of your precious _Taken_ tried to kill her. Is it true?" She smirked, the obvious glee in her voice grating on Jareth.

"No thanks to you, yes, one of the Taken did try to poison her," he glared at her. "Right now, Marissa, this arrogance of yours is starting to get on my last nerve. Marrying you may have been a mistake but I will not continue to let others suffer for it. The Taken are not mindless fools who you can torture for your own amusement. Gen's bitterness towards Sarah is entirely your own doing and you are going to help me to put this right!"

"Gen?" She questioned and Jareth lashed out at the wall, a cry of rage and pain leaving his lips, a sound that could be heard throughout the castle.

"She was your maid the first time that Sarah was here. You held her head in the fire as Sarah and I danced together." He spat at her, Marissa looked calmly back at him, not afraid of this angry man and his pain.

"She's rejected you, _again_!" She cried gleefully. "Oh this is just too good! Who for? That Rilton thing that you call cousin!" She laughed at Jareth's black fury. "Oh, to have seen her face when that thing arrived!" Jareth grabbed hold of her shoulders and shook her and she went still, now slightly afraid that he had finally laid a hand on her and that it was done in anger.

"You will be silent, Marissa and you will help me, or I swear to the goddess..." he pushed her away from him and stalked out of the room. Marissa waited until she was sure he was gone before she started to rub at the angry marks on her arms, shaken and alone.

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Jareth sat on his throne watching the gathered goblins. Marissa was on a smaller throne to his left and Torel stood to his right. The symbolism was not lost on anyone present, the place to his right should have belonged to Marissa, as his wife, yet though they were presenting a united front, it was clear that he did not trust her, she was merely a bauble on display.

The goblins chattered amongst themselves, curious. Their king had not said why this meeting had been called, merely that it had been necessary. All were curious, all were nervous. After several minutes of unrestrained chatter Jareth nodded to Torel, and the steward called for silence. The goblins became still, with only the blinking of large eyes and the twitching of the more feline noses to show that they were not statues.

"Creatures of the Labyrinth!" Jareth stood as he spoke, all eyes on him. He could see Rilton leant on the wall by the door, his chocolate eyes boring into him, trying to tell his cousin that this was a bad idea. The king plunged on. "I have summoned you all here with grave news. Sarah, defeater of the Labyrinth, has returned to the castle." The room erupted with noise, goblins and faerie creatures protesting, questioning, demanding answers. "_Silence_!" He shouted and after a few grumbles the room fell silent again. "I am punishing her as I see fit to. She is not living the life of luxury she thinks she deserves, nor is she being tortured. She wished herself here and now resides amongst, and as one, of the Taken. She is mine to do with as I see fit.

"Despite this, some one of you decided to take matters into their own hands. Not only did they make their own attempt at punishing Sarah, they attempted to _murder_ her. Not to her face, not with a knife or their own hands, but with poison." There was a mutter of approval and Jareth knew he was losing the crowd, despite everything, this was still Sarah, if he did not play this right, the goblins would hail Gen as a heroine and not the criminal that she was. "It was a poison that gives the most terrible of deaths, a poison outlawed for seven centuries. Ziral was used!" The mutters turned into horrified gasps and now those gathered began to mutter against the poisoner. "Fortunately we were able to save Sarah, but this has not been without it's cost.

"Now we must decide what to do with one who would go against her king, one who would turn against one of her sister Taken and murder one of her own. As all here know, the punishment for the mere creation of Ziral is death, and the one who made it is awaiting the completion of that punishment as we speak. But what of the crime of its use?" Out of the corner of his eye Jareth saw Marissa yawn, she had no attention span and he knew that she did not care about how the girl was punished or that it had been Sarah she had attacked. If anything, Jareth thought that his wife was secretly pleased that it had been Sarah that Gen had been aiming at and not one of the other girls.

Clara hobbled forward, appearing from within the crowd of goblins. He had not seen her properly since the night that they had finally managed to cure Sarah. She looked older, tired, more than she had ever looked in the past. It worried him. She stopped at the bottom of the steps to the throne and rested her tiny paws on the top of her stick, her face grave.

"Death is no punishment for one who would do such," she spoke with an unusual amount of reverence for her king, "they have no fear of death. Banishment is the answer."

"So she can try again, Goblin Hag?" Marissa demanded, taking a sudden interest and known for her intense dislike of Clara. "What if next time she doesn't care who she poisons? What if next time she simply finds a way to put it in the food and poison us all?" Jareth held up his hand to prevent any further discussion and doom saying.

"As it stands I have already come to a decision. Both Clara and my ... _wife_," the word rolled off his tongue like a bad taste, "are right." -_unfortunately_- "Death is not an option for one who would use an instrument such as Ziral, nor does this woman fear it. I could almost believe that she welcomes it. Nor is banishment an option, I have spoken with her, the depth of her hatred for Sarah is such that she would find a way to return to the palace and finish what she has started, even to the extent of killing all in the castle to get to her." He gestured to the guard at the doors and they opened them to reveal Gen and her escort. The group made their way slowly to the steps and stood next to Clara.

The scarred maids head was held high, unfazed by her future prospects. She moved with a slight limp, her clothes and skin caked in the dirt of the dungeons, but her remaining eye blazed with fury.

"Gen Winters," A higher goblin began to read from a prepared scroll, his tone blank, "you stand before the Goblin King and the creatures of his kingdom accused of attempted murder using the forbidden art of poison. How do you plead?"

"_Guilty_!" Gen's voice rang out and Jareth hid a cringe, she was going to make a speech. "Guilty with all my heart! She deserved it, every bit! She took my life, she destroyed this city and the castle! What does _he_ do?" She pointed a dirty finger at Jareth, her hands shaking with fury. "He put her in the kitchens! He gave her work in the laundry! He treats her like she is no different to the rest of us, Taken who have worked and lived here since out earliest childhood! He has taken her on outings, introduced her to his family. He gives her _gifts_! Is this..."

"Enough!" Jareth cut her off. "I suggest, little girl, you get all of your facts straight before you begin to make accusations. Is an excursion to watch your family weep over your own grave really an outing? Does my cousin making his own way to the laundry seeking her out mean that I introduced them? Foolish, child." She glared up at him, not backing down and nor did he expect her to. "Whatever your reasoning may be, it does not excuse the fact that you attempted to kill another member of the Taken, that you went against my express orders that none among the Taken should be harmed," he resisted the urge to look at Marissa as he said it. "You have betrayed your king and your people." He looked out over the gathered mass of goblins, they were all staring at the show, amazed at the audacity of the girl. "To that end I have sentenced that you be placed in a oubliette for the rest of your natural life, alone and forgotten." Gen's eye widened, this was not a punishment that she would have credited him with creating.

"I am not afraid to die!"

"Which is exactly why you will not." He twisted his wrist and a crystal formed there. He threw the crystal at her feet, where it shattered in a puff of black glitter and Gen vanished. He stared sadly at the spot for a moment before glaring at the goblins. "Let it serve as a warning!" He snapped and simply vanished from the throne room.

_Ok, I probably won't update until Tuesday next week now. I'll try to before then though, if I can... On a more random note, I was looking at celtic baby names today (no I'm not pregnent, it was with one of the girls I work with) and I found a welsh/cornish name, Jared a variation of which is Jareth, it means "a rose". So our dear Goblin King is a rose. Awww! Anyway, random moment over, please R&R!_

_Artemis_


	19. Chapter 19

_Oh my God! How long has it been since I updated? So long, a whole week at home with no computer, I've been desolate without your reviews! Absolutely desolate. Big thank yous to yodeladyhoo (by the way you're right, you didn't mention feeding her), Sintar, Solea, FireShifter, ScarlethasPheonixpower, AvitarGirl, notwritten, Catwoman99, sweetbabby33, Smallishbadger, Mint Tea Rose, silver.shadow.23, insmudged, FaerieatHeart13, AbandonedBeauty and The Canine Twins. You're all so wonderful for baring with me and waiting so patiently. Happy late Easter to one and all! Though you have no idea what putting up with twenty-five members of my family has done to me! It's fried my brain utterly!! Anyway, on with the show, hope you like it, let me know._

Chapter Nineteen: Recovery.

The door to Jareth's study slammed open and Rilton stormed in. To his disgust, rilton did not see Jareth move or even flinch, it was almost like he had been expecting him.

"What were you _thinking_?" he demanded, closing the door behind him.

"Rilton, please, don't question me on the way I run my kingdom," Jareth's reply was surprisingly calm.

"That _girl_ should be dead! You know the laws!" Rilton's normally calm demeanor was gone. "You should never have mentioned Sarah! Now the whole kingdom knows she's here!"

"And they know the price Gen had to pay for her attempted revenge. They know that we will protect Sarah!"

"You kept her presence here from Marissa for five months. It could have been longer, the whole year, even! You _know_ she'll cause trouble! Dammit, Jareth, will you _look_ at me!" The Goblin King turned and Rilton could see how tired he was. "Sarah is in more danger now than she ever was before. She _can't_ stay here!"

"She can and she _will_! Marissa knew that Sarah was here before I got the chance to tell her. One of the goblins made it their business to make sure my _wife_ knew." Jareth rubbed tiredly at his forehead. "Rilton, I don't want to discuss this tonight..."

"When will we discuss it?" Jareth glared at him, his posture telling Rilton to leave. "Don't make the mistake of thinking that you're the only person who cares about Sarah," he shook his head as he turned to obey the silent order, opened the door and hesitated before looking back at his cousin. "You know, for someone who claims to care about her, you have a funny way of showing it." Rilton left his cousin to alone to think on his words as he began to make his way slowly to the infirmary, deciding to see Sarah before he went to find his own bed. He had thought that he would find her alone. It seemed that someone else had the same idea as he did, and that the person in question was not going anywhere any time in the near future.

Jareth was sat by the bed, Sarah's hands held in his. Both were talking in hushed voices and neither seemed to notice him. With a small sigh, Rilton left.

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"You know, for someone who claims to care about her, you have a funny way of showing it." Jareth watched Rilton leave, his cousins words washing over him like icy water. Rilton was right, for someone who claimed to have feelings for Sarah, despite her rejection, he did show it in a strange way. That made him pause, he had never actually _admitted_ to anyone that he really cared for Sarah, at least, never how deeply.

Suddenly he needed to see her, he needed to be near her and tell her what he had done. He wanted to hear what she thought and was hoping that she would forgive him for telling the whole kingdom that she was here. He had to get there before Rilton did, before his cousin had a chance tell her what had happened, and tried to convince her that she was better off with him.

In an instant he had transported himself outside the infirmary door and he stood just looking at Sarah, allowing himself a second to admire her beauty, even despite the fact that only a week before she had been nearly at death's door. She looked over and raised a hand slowly and waved, trying to hide the slight tremble in her recovering arms. A gentle smile played in her lips, making her tired eyes sparkle and despite his low spirits, Jareth felt himself smile in return.

He crossed to the side of her bed, moving a chair so that he could sit facing her, and took both her hands in his. For a moment he was surprised to notice that he could feel how work worn they were, even through his leather gloves. But he let it wash over him and they sat in silence for a moment before Sarah finally spoke.

"Did you come to see me for a reason, or do you just want to stare at me some more?" He smirked at her for a second and in that moment everything between them seemed to be alright. Then Jareth sighed and Sarah knew that there was a problem. "What's the matter?"

"Do you want to know what happened today?" He paused long enough for her to nod. "I called the whole Kingdom to the throne room, and I told them what had happened. I told them about you. The goblins weren't happy and neither was Rilton."

"Do you think they'll try again?" She asked quietly, giving his hand a light squeeze. He squeezed her hand in return and smiled at her briefly, though it was forced and it did not reach his eyes.

"I told Marissa that she had to back me up, she didn't like it much but she did as she was told." He bowed his head for a moment, then looked back at her. "I had a goblin sentenced to death, one of my own creatures, but when it came to Gen..."

"Whatever you did, you thought it was right."

"I imprisoned her in an oubliette. A place to forget about people. I gave death to the maker and life to the user." He laughed harshly and Sarah could see that something had happened to make him regret his decision.

"What happened?" She let her worry tinge her tone.

"I just told you."

"After, after the meeting and you sent Gen away."

"Rilton and I had a talk, he doesn't agree with me and I'm wondering if he was right. I probably shouldn't have been so lenient with Gen. The goblins will see this as a weakness on my part." He admitted, baffled as to why he was telling her his fears and worries. She smiled at him for just a second and it lifted his spirits.

"For what it's worth, you were right. She would have been a martyr if you had killed her."

"You are being much too calm with all of this. If I had been in your place..."

"If you were here we'd all be in trouble, Jareth," she muttered with a wry twist of her lips and felt a thrill when he laughed softly at her. "I'm serious though, I've had a lot of time to think about this and I don't really blame Gen. At the end of the day it isn't her fault, the things that happened to her. Everything really comes back to..."

"Me?"

"I was going to say 'your wife' but you want to shoulder the blame and wallow in misery be my guest. Which reminds me, about my relapse. How long did you wallow in misery then?" She asked, a hard edge coming to her voice and Jareth sighed, he had hoped she had forgotten that part.

"Until the Starlaces bloomed." He replied honestly. "It took me that long to get my study back in order," he muttered, not meaning for her to hear it.

"You trashed your study?" She asked amused. He nodded and she laughed. "Well at least you made yourself miserable at the same time!"

"You're not angry?" He looked genuinely confused and that got another laugh out of her. Ades glanced over and from the look on his face Jareth could see that it was nearly time for him to leave.

"I was, for a few days I was so angry I never wanted to see you again, but... everyone makes mistakes, Jareth, and at the end of the day nothing too dramatic happened as a result." Ades appeared at the foot of the bed and cleared his throat. Jareth shot him a look that spoke eloquently of pain and the healer backed away for a moment. "He's right, you know. We both need to get some sleep." Jareth nodded, kissed the backs of both her hands and stood, spared the healer another filthy look and left.

Sarah sighed and leant her head back against the head board, lifting a trembling hand to massage her forehead.

"You lied to him, Sarah," Ades muttered as he helped her to lie down and get comfortable. "You've been angry about your relapse for days."

"It wasn't the time. Now there never will be a time." She murmured, already feeling sleep coming to claim her. Ades sighed, it was so clear to him that his king had feelings for this hurting young woman in front of him, and just as clear that she had some feelings in return. The problem was that neither was in a place to admit it, this was going to cause Sarah problems as she tried to recover.

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Sarah woke the next morning still upset and her head still hurt. She sighed and opened her eyes. Unfortunately, the first person she saw was Rilton. Her conversation with Jareth the night before flooded back into her mind and she turned away from his smiling face.

"Sarah?" He asked, his voice betraying his confusion. She looked back at him and for some reason she lost her temper.

"'Sarah' what?" She demanded. " You know, for a friend, you seemed to find it remarkably easy to forget about me." She snapped.

"What are you talking about?" He reached for her hands and she yanked them away.

"My relapse, Rilton, my relapse. Jareth told me last night. You both forgot. Do I really mean _that_ little to you?"

"Don't be silly, of course you mean a lot to me." Rilton could not understand where all this was coming from. Why had Jareth told her that they had forgotten about her. "We were looking into.." He stopped. It was a pathetic excuse and evidently Jareth had already tried it and had fallen flat on his face. "Sarah, _please_, Jareth said that you were ok with it."

"Oh, so you spoke to him?" Her tone was icy, and her eyes seemed to burn.

"Yes, I spoke to him. If you aren't alright with it, why did you tell him that you were?" Sarah put one of her hands to her temples, rubbing tiredly.

"It wasn't the time for it."

"So you're taking it out on me? You're as bad as he is! Sarah, you can't lay all of this at my door! There was two of us involved and you can't just blame me! He deserves some of your anger! You should at least tell him how you feel before you leave!"

"'Leave'? What the hell do you mean 'leave'?" She demanded, pushing herself further up the bed and glaring at him.

"You're not safe here anymore, I know it and he knows it, Marissa knows that you're here, so do the Goblins, you've already been attacked once, do you want to risk it again? Next time it could be Marissa!" He reached for her hands again and she jerked them away, still angry with him, but hurt now too.

"So Jareth is going to send me away?" She asked, and did not pull away as he finally managed to take her hand.

"No, I just don't want you to stay here, you're in danger here."

"Where would you have me go?"

"Come with me, to the elf court. You wouldn't have to work, I would take care of you." He gripped her hand and she frowned at him.

"What would Jareth say?" She shook her head. "I can't, Rilton, I can't just leave, not after everything that he's done for me."

"What's he done for you?" Rilton demanded, standing. "He brought you here, put you to work, tormented you... Sarah... he hasn't exactly been a gentleman about all of this. What happened to the city wasn't your fault, you didn't know it would happen. He shouldn't be punishing you for this."

"He's been generous, Rilton. The mood he was in when I arrived... I think about it and I'm almost surprised that he didn't kill me as soon as he saw me. He gave me _work_, Rilton, he could have just turned me out. He could have left me to die. He didn't. I can't just up and leave if he doesn't want me to." She wrung her hands together. "Rilton, we're friends, please try to understand."

"We _are_ friends, I want what's best for you, Sarah, I want you to be safe."

"I _am_ safe, Rilton, as long as I'm here with you and Jareth, I'll be fine."

"And when I leave?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." She told him reasonably. Rilton looked back at her helplessly, then turned and marched from the room. "That didn't go so well," Sarah muttered to herself as she wriggled, trying to find a more comfortable position to sit in. "Not well at all."

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Rilton paced his rooms, trying to figure out what hold it was that Jareth had on Sarah to make her want to stay despite all of the things that had happened to her since she had arrived. He was familiar with Jareth's idea of a birthday gift, taking Sarah to see her family mourn her passing was not Rilton's idea of the actions of a man I love. To Rilton, those were actions worthy of the most hardy of enemies. Jareth had once sworn to Rilton that he would never cease to hate Sarah for what she had done to his kingdom, he wondered when hatred had begun to give way to Jareth's own twisted version of love and devotion.

It was then that he noticed how much his own feelings for Sarah had altered since he had met her. Far from finding a miserable, spoiled child, he had found a young woman who was slowly coming to terms with the lot that life had dealt her. While he knew that she was not happy with the way that she had been treated or the job that she had been given, she was beginning to accept it. She was not happy in her work, but she did not resent it so much as he had thought. With his friendship he had begun to see some of the fiery Sarah that his cousin had spoken about so often, before he had grown to hate her so much, before she had rejected him. Rilton had begun to understand what had attracted Jareth to Sarah in the first place and was surprised to find that he shared some of his cousins feeling for her.

Her feelings towards his cousin were a little more difficult to figure out. Some days she seemed to only just tolerate him, others she seemed better inclined towards friendship and yet others she seemed to hate him so passionately that Rilton was almost surprised that she had not made a number of attempts on his life by now. There was no doubting that she seemed better able to stand his presence since he had helped to cure her and Rilton wondered if that was because they had spent more time actually talking or if it was because of his magic which was now flowing through her. Certainly she and Jareth did not spend the time they had together actually talking much, Sarah seemed to be content for him to sit and read to her while she spent all of her time with Rilton discussing more inane things and catching up on the kitchen gossip. Her discussions with Jareth were usually more spirited and were normally based around the book they were reading at the time. Rilton had never seen them actually have a conversation like normal people did. They were always careful to avoid more controversial subjects and never looked directly at each other. If he looked at her it would be while she was looking away and she only ever turned to look at him, it was when he looked away. It frustrated the elf and he desperately wanted to get Sarah out from under his cousin's nose and away from Marissa. Perhaps, just perhaps, his words to Sarah that morning would cause her to broach the subject to Jareth and maybe she could persuade him, and herself, that she would be better off with him than in the Labyrinth. He hoped so.

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It was several days before Jareth came back to see Sarah. Rilton had told him what she had said and how upset she had been. When he did finally return to her, he looked tired and she could tell that he had been spending a great deal of time running his kingdom. He did, however, have a book under one arm and she was delighted to note that it was a novel, a classic of the Aboveground.

"Your Majesty," she giggled as he took her hand in his and kissed the back of it. He graced her with a small smile and sat down.

"Sarah," her name slid from his lips like honey and it made her giggle a little more.

"So what have you brought me today?" She asked as he let go of her hand to take the book from under his arm.

"Persuasion, a Jane Austen novel, I believe. You mentioned it about a week ago. I've scoured the Underground for this copy." She gave him a dazzling smile, then clicked her fingers, still grinning.

"Well come on then, read, Kingy, read!" She commanded, he shot her a slightly filthy look then nodded and opened the book.

She listened silently as he read of the life of Anne Elliott. Of her families trials and tribulations. This was one of her favourite stories, love lost and found again. That thought made her look at Jareth, he did not notice her sudden attention and continued to read, arching one eyebrow as he began to tell of Anne's relationship with Captain Wentworth.

"What?" She asked when he paused and set the book in his lap.

"I find it hard to believe that this girl felt as strongly as she claimed for Captain Wentworth if she would allow her family and her friend to persuade her not to marry him." Jareth replied, looking at her seriously.

"But that's the whole point of this novel, the regret she feels because she rejected him for the good of her family." Seeing the intense look in his eyes as she said it, Sarah began to think on the feelings that had been building in her since she had been taken to the infirmary. Spending all of this time with Jareth, she had begun to really appreciate what an attractive man he was. Unlike Rilton, he had something between his ears that wasn't just air, and she liked the way that the books that they read together allowed her to see that mind in action. He still had a nasty temper that definitely needed some smoothing, yet the temper was part of what made him attractive, it made him dangerous.

-_Idiot_.- She berated herself mentally and began to listen to him again.

"I understand his position," Jareth interrupted later, setting the book down again. "She broke his heart and I can see why he would not want anything to do with her." How alike that was to his own position.

"But she understands it too, Jareth, she knows that she broke his heart. She knows why he does not really wish to see her. It won't stop her from hoping that he will be able to see past that and offer to take her back." -_If only we all had that kind of luck_- she mused then pulled herself up short, trying to figure out where that thought had come from.

"Perhaps, would you be so understanding in his place?"

"I don't know." She stopped, thought on it. If Jason came and asked her to take him back, even though he had broken her heart, would she do it?. "No," she muttered then, "I could not." Jareth nodded and began to read again.

Some time later he set the book down again and closed it. She knew that he was getting ready to leave her for the day and she reached out and took his hand.

"Stay? Please? Just to talk. We never really talk, Jareth," he looked down at the hand still firmly holding his own. He had longed for the moment when she would ask him to stay with her. Never had he thought that she would actually touch him as she asked it. Maybe it was the book they had been reading together, or maybe it was his surprise at her actions, but whatever the reason, when he looked back at her his eyes held the same sorrow that she had see there so much.

"Very well," he turned his hand so that he could squeeze hers, delight flashing over his face when she returned the gesture, then fell silent.

Sarah studied his face for a long while before speaking, not wanting to interrupt the comfortable silence that was now between them, but not able to continue seeing him looking so sad and alone without finding out why.

"You're not happy, are you?" He looked startled. "Even the night that I first met you I could see that you weren't really happy."

"What do you mean?" He asked, surprised at this insight. Not surprised that she would be the one to make the comment.

"I guess you've been living with it for so long, you don't even notice it anymore. It sort of follows you, like a shadow. Did _I_ do this to you?" -_I rejected you, did I do this by refusing to love you?-_

"No, dear Sarah, do not take my misery onto yourself as well. This is not your fault, or at least not the whole of it. Your actions are merely the most recent additions to something which has been there for nearly three hundred years."

"So what did cause it?"

"It doesn't matter." He looked away from her questioning eyes.

"Please, Jareth, tell me. Please?" He made the mistake of looking back at her and gave in to the pleading look on her face.

"Marissa is the main cause. Her unwavering cruelty. Life with her has not been easy."

"Why did you marry her? If she's as cruel as you say..."

"She was beautiful," he shrugged, "and I was young, barely out of my childhood. I became infatuated with her, a childish response to perceived beauty, and she realised it. She used it against me, played on it."

"But surely you saw some hint of her cruelty before the ceremony."

"No," he shook his head and looked at the hand that he still held. "I look back and I know that all of the signs were there, but I ignored them. I did not see what I did not want to. I foolishly believed that I could make this into a happy marriage. I was wrong and that shames me. My sham marriage and the contempt I feel for Marissa makes me feel nothing but disgust. The closer the end gets, the harder it becomes to cope with her."

"Buts it's only a little under six months, it's hardly forever." He did not answer her and she searched for something else to say, something to take his mind off his queen. "Rilton said something to me yesterday, and I have to say that I've been thinking about it, just a little." Jareth raised an eyebrow. "He said that he wanted me to go to the elf kingdom with him for a while when he leaves."

"He said _what_?" Anger flashed across Jareth's face and Sarah flinched a little. "That arrogant, selfish, son of a _whore_! The elf court is no place for a woman such as _you_, Sarah!"

"Oh?" She snapped, feeling her anger racing through her and dying to see how he could possibly explain that last comment. "Too _good_ for me is it?" She demanded.

"No," his expression softened and he touched his hand to her cheek, not surprised when she turned away from it. "_You_ are too good for _them_." Her icy eyes melted a little and he took the opportunity to press her hand to his lips. "Excuse me."

_Rilton's in trouble, Rilton's in trouble. This chapter is a little random and I can only apologise, it sort of wrote itself while I was watching Persuasion and I noticed the parallels, Jareth and Sarah sort of took over at that point, so yeah, don't own Persuasion either. I wanted to show a little of what they do when Sarah is being visited by her Fae suitors in the infirmary and Rilton was the one who seemed able to chatter inanely whist Jareth would either sit silently or not visit at all, therefore he became the local bookworm! Anyway, my luvvers, R&R, you know that I love them! Next update will be on Friday._

_Artemis_


	20. Chapter 20

_Ok, so first I have to grovel profusely for not getting this up any sooner, the Docmanager isn't working but I have to send out **huge** thank yous to H.T.Marie (even though you will never read this) for telling us how, I promise to read your fic and review once I've done this. On that note, thank you to my reviewers for waiting so patiently for me, thanks out to Abandoned Beauty, Tonberri (sorry if I've gotten you addicted), notwritten, AvitarGirl, yodeladyhoo, Sintar, ScarlethasPheonixpower, SileaLove, LabyLvrPhx, The Canine Twins, draegon-fire, sweetbabby33, Mint Tea Rose, FaerieatHeart, silver.shadow.23 and Kenseikan Weirdo. Big big thanks to FireShifter for reassuring me that I was not the only one with a problem uploading. Please R&R! _

Chapter Twenty: Elf Prince.

"Rilton!" Jareth shouted to his cousin as he strode down the hall towards him. The tall elf turned and stopped, waiting for Jareth but not failing to see the anger on his face.

"What did she do this time?" He asked, certain that it was Sarah his cousin was angry at, not him.

"Sarah did not do anything, dear cousin." Jareth's words were laced with venom. "Tell me, have you, by any chance, mentioned to Sarah that she may go with you to the Elf court?" Rilton flinched.

"She told you?"

"Evidently. What were you thinking?" The ice in Jareth's voice seemed to chill the air.

"She'll be alright, Jareth, I would protect her. I would have her under my care until it becomes safe for her to return here."

"Or until you find some new woman to _lavish_ your attentions on! I _know_ you, Rilton, and I _know_ your father's court! How can you possibly protect her from such debauchery? Can you protect her from the attentions of your own father if need be?"

"Of course I could!" Rilton's face had gone red with every word of Jareth's, not happy with what he was hearing. "And _you_ don't need to worry about my abandoning her. My conduct towards her could hardly be any worse than yours has been!" He watched Jareth flinch and felt a rush of guilty pleasure. "Nor is my father's court any more debauched than yours!"

Jareth glared at his cousin silently for a long moment, surprised at the stab of angry jealousy that rushed through him with Rilton's words and settled to burn in his heart. For as long as Jareth could remember, he and Rilton had been good friends. Their mothers had been sisters and whilst Jareth's parents had been alive he had spent a great deal of time with his cousin, whether at the Goblin Castle or the Elf Palace. He knew from personal experience that the Elf court was in a worse state than the Goblin court. The goblins, whether the nobles, higher or lesser kind, did not have the levels of sophistication that the Elves did.

Once his parents had died, Jareth had been forced to spend less time with Rilton and more time with Clara and Torel's father, who later gave way to Torel. He and his cousin had become a little more distant, letters were never the same as talking, especially when one was gaining all of the experience and the other was simply hearing of it. Jareth had often wondered how his marriage would have turned out if he had been able to have half of the advantages and experiences that Rilton had. Now to see a further wedge driven between them, by Sarah no less, a wedge that was reopening an old wound from so many years ago, broke Jareth's heart more than he wanted to admit.

"She will be safer here, Rilton, I will never tire of protecting her."

"You once told me that you would never cease to hate her, Jareth," Rilton jibed, "you could never feel for her again because of what she had done. Which is it to be?" His tone was reasonable and Jareth pinched the bridge of his nose as he bowed his head in thought.

"Rilton..." he paused, "I don't hate her, I _never_ hated her. I was bitter and angry."

"_That's_ an understatement." Rilton laughed and went to his cousin's side. "Jareth, you haven't had time to think properly since she came here. I _know_ that you spend most of your time watching her." Jareth glared at him, his mismatched eyes flashing dangerously. "And with everything that's been happening lately, everybody knows that she's here. You need a little time for this whole thing to blow over. Let me take her away for a while, so that you _don't_ need to worry about watching her. You can have time to get your head on straight, your subjects can have time to forget.. I'll keep her safe, I promise." Jareth stood, silent, thinking. There was no way for him to get out of this. Rilton had him backed into a corner. He could not deny that he spent a great deal of time watching over Sarah, that he was wearing himself out worrying about her. But to send her to the Elf court, where she could be exposed to the exotic debaucheries of the Elf King and his people, made him worry all the more. He needed to know what Sarah thought, what she wanted to do.

"If Sarah agrees and Ades thinks that it will do her some good, that it will not harm her, then... very well." Rilton nodded and together they made their way to the infirmary.

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Sarah was used to having the two exotic and rather attractive Fae men drop in on her at the oddest and most random moments they could. She was not used to them coming to see her together, and certainly not whilst she was trying to get up for the first time in three weeks. Ades was supporting her as she made her first attempt at standing on her weakened legs, she felt like a newborn foal, and seeing Jareth and his cousin descending on her, one with a lunatic grin and the other with a scowl that could kill, put her right off her attempt of getting out of bed and she let herself fall back with a large sigh.

"What do you two want?" She asked petulantly, her scowl mirroring Jareth's.

"Don't let us stop you, Sarah," Rilton was altogether too cheerful and it set Sarah's frayed nerves on edge. "Why don't you let us help?"

"Thank you," she took hold of Ades' arm again, "but I've got all of the help that I can manage." This time she managed to get onto her feet and she flashed a smile of triumph at Jareth before she sat down again, a little more gently this time. Rilton grinned at her again and even Jareth's scowl melted away for a moment, replaced by a look of pride and happiness. "So what did you two want, again?" She repeated her original question. Jareth looked at Rilton, the Elf Prince was almost overflowing with excitement.

"He's agreed to let me take you to the Elf Palace!" He crowed. Sarah looked over at Jareth, who seemed to be trying kill Rilton with the power of his mind.

"What's this?" She asked, confusion all over her face, though Jareth could sense some amusement on her part at Rilton's childish joy.

"If you wish, and if Healer Ades raises no objections as to your health, Rilton would like you to return with him to the Elf Palace when he leaves in a week's time." His tone was sullen and it seemed to Sarah like he was trying to pass a hint to Ades. The Elf healer simply frowned a little and looked away. "Sarah, you have to understand that you will be on your own there. Your friends will not be with you..."

"_I'll_ be with her, Jareth and really that's all she will need. Besides, Sarah is perfectly capable of making friends. She did it here, she can do it at the Palace." Rilton cut in and Sarah had the feeling that they been arguing about this before they had come to find her.

"I can't force you to stay, Sarah, Rilton has promised to protect you and since you have been so unwell, perhaps a change of air and scenery will do you good." Sarah knew that he wanted to say more but he turned to Ades instead. "Healer, will she be able to travel next week?"

"Certainly the travel will do her good, Your Majesty, however, the Elf Court... is that really wise? I spent a great deal of time there during my noviciate and the things that I saw... is it really wise to expose a recovering girl to that kind of... revelry?" He had managed to say what Jareth could not.

"What _exactly_ are you implying, Healer Ades?" Rilton's tone was dangerous.

"I speak only from experience, Your Highness. I did not mean to offend." Ades bowed and left the room.

The handsome cousins looked back at Sarah, one smiling and the other scowling. She thought for a long moment then smiled at Rilton.

"I think Ades is probably right, I need to change the scenery, and the air, I will go with Rilton, if that's alright?" Jareth's face fell and she saw that her decision had hurt him. Rilton on the other hand, jumped in the air.

"I must tell my father to have a room made up, Sarah, excuse me." He kissed Sarah's cheek and ran from the room. Jareth watched him leave and waited in silence for some time until speaking again.

"Sarah, I cannot let you go without giving you one last warning." His expression made her sit and listen to him in grave silence. "Do not believe yourself entirely safe, even with my cousins protection, the Elf Court is not a place to rest easy. As Ades said, I, too, do not believe it wise to expose a recovering young lady to the kinds of revelry that Andros and his court seem to thrive on. You will be at your safest whilst you are with Rilton, but should he become... distracted by another, should you cease to feel safe with him, do not hesitate to call me. I will come for you at a moments notice if need be."

Sarah laughed at that and bowed her head to him, her eyes dancing with mirth, though there was an undercurrent of worry in her eyes. "I'm sure that I will be fine."

"Just think on what I have said, Sarah, think on it and remember it."

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Sarah rested her hand nervously on Rilton's offered arm, a tight smile on her face as she forced herself to take a deep calming breath. Her knees seemed to be knocking and she wondered if it was her nerves or the fact that her legs were still weak from her long stay in bed.

"Relax," he breathed in her ear and she squirmed a little as his warm breath tickled her, then flinched when trumpets began to sound. "I hate that," Rilton muttered then lead her to the now open door.

The throne room had been decorated with long banners of brilliant reds and golds, and it was big, very big. The throne room of the Goblin Castle could easily have fit in there five times over and Sarah began to appreciate that Jareth was not of the opinion that bigger was better. She and Rilton paused at the top of the long flight of stairs that lead down to the main floor of the room, allowing the gathered elves to look at them before they began their descent into the mass of nobles and made their way to the two thrones at the opposite end of the room.

One, the larger, was occupied by a male elf, who could only be Rilton's father. The other was occupied by a tiny blonde elf woman, her figure full and her clear blue eyes sparkling with mischief, a glint which betrayed the faint blush on her cheeks as false. Sarah felt Rilton stiffen at her side and she turned her head a little so she could see his face. His lush lips were pinched into a thin hard line.

"What's wrong?" She whispered.

"_That_ is _not_ my mother!" He hissed back, his voice thick with barely controlled fury. The swimming crowds parted for them and finally began to stop dancing, some of the women were hiding sniggers as Sarah and her friend made their way past them. The men wore breeches at least as tight, if not tighter, than the ones she had grown used to seeing Jareth in, with fitted jackets in varying colours and the ladies wore gowns that left _very_ little to the imagination. They were long and tightly fitted, cut very low at the front and off the shoulders, one of them leaned forward to leer at Rilton and Sarah was surprised that she did not fall out of the flimsy fabric entirely, since the dresses seemed to be made of several layers of soft, thin muslin. It made her acutely aware of how demure the dress she was wearing would appear, even though when Rilton had presented it to her she had been shocked at how revealing it had seemed. Her own dress was the same emerald green as her eyes and cut low at the back with a scoop neckline at the front that showed just a hint of cleavage. Rilton had laughed at her initial shocked reaction, she had been so used to her maids dress and the way it had covered all part of her, leaving nothing to scrutiny. Now she felt a little overdressed.

The two came to a halt at the foot of the raised dais that the thrones sat on and Rilton bowed as Sarah dipped in a low curtsey. The Elf King stood and made his way down the steps to great his son, a rare sign of favour. His skin was deeply tanned and unmarked, he looked no older than forty. His eyes were the same colour as Rilton's, yet they lacked the warmth and the ready humour of his son and Sarah reasoned that the bright part of Rilton must come from his mother. The King's hair was almost black and that also lead Sarah to conclude that Rilton had inherited his hair colouring, and from the looks of things his kissable lips, from his mother as well, since Andros' were a natural harsh line.

"Prince Rilton, you have returned to us," the King muttered, though there was no real welcome in his voice. "And this would be...?" He looked at Sarah, running his eyes over her and lingering on her lips for a moment before gracing her with a cruel smirk. Behind him the buxom elf woman scowled.

"This is Sarah, of the Taken. She has been gravely ill and my cousin has placed her in my care for a time so that she may take advantage of the change in scenery and air." If anything, King Andros' smile became larger and Sarah decided that she just wanted to curl up in a tiny little ball away from him, not liking the new spark that had come into his eyes.

"_Really_, so he's managed to get _you_ involved in the care of these pathetic things too? I had no idea he cared that much about them." Rilton simply shrugged and pressed his free hand onto Sarah's, holding her hand on his arm and disguising the fist that had slowly been created.

"Might I enquire after my mother?" He asked politely instead, not wanting to start a fight over Jareth's morals and ethics regarding the Taken.

"She has retired to the winter palace early this year. Her longings for the great pine forests of her youth seem to grow stronger with the passing seasons." He clapped his hands and the musicians began to play again. "Come, My Dear," he held his hand out to the blonde elf and lead her to the dance floor.

"Rilton, how could you just...?"

"We'll talk about it later, I promise, dance with me? _Please_?" He looked at the gathered women with the same expression one might see on a caged animal and Sarah could not help but agree.

_Once again I apologise for how late it is, you know that I try to keep up with it all as best I can. With any luck my next post will be on Tuesday, regardless of whether or not they've got the docmanager fixed yet, provided this works of course... R&R as always, you know how much I like them!_

_Artemis_


	21. Chapter 21

_Ok, this one is a little short this time, in fact it's a lot short. But I can't get it longer and I actually don't want to either. It makes sense as it is, but I'm sorry anyway, which is why I'm posting early, so that I can post the next chapter a little earlier to. Thanks go out to all who have been reading, especially my reviewers: silver.shadow.23, yodeladyhoo, forward-but-sincere-pirate, FireShifter, AvitarGirl, dragonmisstres, Abandoned Beauty, mokosh, notwritten, Mint Tea Rose, The Canine Twins, ScarlethasPheonixpower, Catwoman99 and Skyrere. I say this makes sense short, actually it was written in the midst of a terrible headache, so there was no possible way to make it longer, it still makes sense, I hope. _

Chapter Twenty-one: Elf Court.

It was the end of Sarah's second week at the Elf Summer Palace and she was bored. She and Rilton had spent every morning riding along the brilliant white beaches that stretched beside the palace. In the afternoons they had spent their time walking in the gardens, surrounded by flowers that Sarah knew and those that were exotic and beautiful, their idle chat and laughter disrupting the fragile peace and earning them many a hard look from others among the courtiers. On the rare rainy afternoon Sarah could be found in the great library reading whilst Rilton occupied himself with all the duties of a Prince of the Realm, one who stood to inherit his father's throne. However the last couple of sun filled days, Rilton had been summoned to see his father and not returned. To make matters worse, Sarah had no friends amongst the Elves, servants, noble or otherwise. They all avoided her, human as she was, seemingly resentful of the way she seemed to influence Rilton.

So this day she was rambling the gardens alone, missing Rilton's easy laughter and his reassuring warmth. The soft silks of her gown rustled softly as she moved and then paused to look at the same flowers she had been looking at for the past two weeks.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" A soft voice whispered in her ear, "a Lover's Cup," she swallowed as she felt cool hands slide around her waist and flinched away as she turned from the mottled pink flower, curtseying when she saw that it was Andros who was stood behind her.

"Your Majesty!" She took a steadying breath. "Forgive me I did not know you were here!" She struggled to find a way out without offending him, not wanting to be with the lecherous Elf King and definitely not liking the way that his eyes lit up when he looked at her.

"I purposely came to make my son's excuses to you. It seems he has become rather distracted of late." He winked at her. "I'm sure you understand." Sarah wanted to shake her head and deny having any knowledge of what he was implying, but Jareth's warning before she had left sprung to mind: - _You will be at your safest whilst you are with Rilton, but should he become... distracted by another, should you cease to feel safe with him, do not hesitate to call me. I will come for you at a moments notice if need be._- She had laughed and ignored him, now she was beginning to wonder if that had been a good idea.

A cold hand touched her cheek and she flinched away again, turning from the Elf King's touch.

"Come now, My Dear, why should you and I not have our own fun whilst my son has his?" He pulled her closer and Sarah turned her face away, trying to push him from her and wanting to lash out at him yet knowing that it would effectively sign her death warrant. He leant in, pressing cold, unfeeling lips against hers and allowing one hand to roam over her body.

"Father!" Rilton's voice rang out over the gardens and Andros muttered something before turning his attention to his son, yet seemingly still able to prevent Sarah from escaping him.

"Can this not wait, Son. I'm busy." Sarah began to struggle harder to free herself.

"Let her go, Father, she does not want this." The Elf King pushed Sarah away and moved towards his son, glaring at him.

"How could she not? I am a King." He winked again at Sarah. "Until next time, dearest." He stalked from the garden, pausing long enough to shout at one of the gardeners and kick a plant pot that got in his way.

Rilton turned to look at her.

"Sarah, Goddess! Are you alright? Did he hurt you at all?" He put his hands on her face and turned her head from side to side, looking for any signs of injury.

"No, I... I don't think that he wanted to hurt me, he wanted..." she fell into his arms and clung to him as he held her tight.

"I'm sorry, Sarah, it's my fault he went after you like this," he whispered against her hair, a soft chocolate strand tickled his nose a little, he ignored it. "My care of you seems to have gotten you involved with the eternal wrangling between my father and I."

"What do you mean?" She asked, shifting a little in his arms.

"You are a highly attractive woman, Sarah, even _I_ am not _that_ blind." Sarah turned her face into his chest so that he would not see her blush. "My father cannot fail to see that but because he knows that you are mortal he would not normally act on any attraction, no matter how strong he felt it was." Rilton paused, knowing that he must have given at least a little offense, then he plunged on. "However, because you are in my care," -_because he can't fail to see that I have feelings for you,_- "because you have my ear, he desires you more because he knows that it will hurt me and he thinks that you _belong_ to me, it will hurt all the more. I'm sorry, there is no other way to put it, I did not mean to offend you at all." He felt her nod against his chest and her arms tightened briefly before she spoke again, lifting her head away and looking up into his eyes.

"Why are you two fighting?"

"The way that he treats my mother. He is appalling in his behaviour, always flaunting his mistresses in front of her and sending her away in favour of them, it has broken her heart. I wish you could have met her, of all the times for him to have sent her away!" Sarah thought of the way that Andros had looked at her on her first evening, the way he had smirked at her and let himself run his eyes over her body, even as his mistress watched him, she could easily believe the way that he treated his wife. She could also believe that it upset Rilton, he seemed to have inherited so little of his personality from his father, so much of him seemed to be his mother. He noticed the direction that her thoughts were taking her, because he answered the unasked question. "I spent a great deal of time with my mother and Jareth, when his parents were alive, as a child. Much of what I know I learnt from her, much of who I am came to be under her influence. I miss that now that my father has brought me to live at court. I missed her when he brought me four hundred years ago and I miss her still." He kissed Sarah's forehead and they slipped into a comfortable silence.

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Nadine went into Clara's study, a little nervous as she smoothed back her mousey hair that fell lazily down her back, she began to gather it up, tying it off with a piece of pale blue ribbon as she came to a halt opposite the Goblin Matron. The little goblin looked up at her, yet did not quite seem to see or recognise her until she squinted and acknowledged her.

"Child-Nadine, what can this old crone do for you today?" She asked and her voice seemed to have lost it's sparkle, she sounded tired, almost dead.

"I was wondering if you knew when Sarah was due back, ma'am?" She smoothed the front of her dress down, aware that the goblin was now squinting at it and noting all of the stains.

"I do not know, Young One, the King allowed her to go with Prince Rilton, Healer Ades believed that a change in scenery and air would aid her return to health." Clara shrugged and climbed carefully down from her chair, her movements painfully slow. "I am weary, child, when Sarah returns I will ensure that you are informed. I must rest." Nadine curtseyed and left quietly, glancing back once at the ancient goblin before she closed the door. A crash alerted her to a problem almost the instant that the door latched and she turned and opened it quickly.

Clara lay on the floor, still, unconscious. Nadine took a single deep breath and started to shout.

_It made sense to end it there. I'm sorry it's so short, I really am, but the next chapter isn't ready yet so I can't give that to you for a couple of days, Wednesday by the latest, I promise. R&R_

_Artemis_


	22. Chapter 22

_Ok, my update and I have to apologise again because once again it's quite short. Thanks go out to: The Canine Twins, AvitarGirl, FireShifter, snip-snippett, inksmudged, InuLver7, reagon-ire, Skyrere, notwritten, Abandoned Beauty and FaerieatHeart13, you're all amazing!_

Chapter Twenty-two: Discovery.

Sarah and Rilton walked along the beach, barefoot in the soft sand. Sarah held her white sandals in her hands, the thin straps hooked over her fingers, and she had hitched up her simple pink, linen skirt with her other hand. Rilton's white shirt was open to the waist, letting the autumn sun and the soft breeze caress his tanned chest, he had rolled his breeches up to his knees and slung his knee length boots around his neck having tied the laces together.

They walked in companionable silence, neither wanting to disturb the peace of the early autumn evening. Behind them the Elven Summer Palace was quiet as the Elf Court took a quiet siesta in preparation for another night of revelry and mischief. Despite the two weeks that Sarah had been at the Palace, she had not yet grown accustomed to the noise and the merry making, the way that Rilton's people always seemed to be laughing and chatting. It was different to the relative silence of the Goblin Castle, the air of general sorrow and tension and it made the antics of the elves a little disconcerting, especially in light of how humans had painted them in the stories of the Aboveground. Sarah had also studiously avoided being alone with Andros, even before the incident in the garden earlier that day, and for the most part she had been successful.

Seawater lapped at the sides of her feet and she glanced at Rilton, now up to his ankles in the swirling water. He was smiling softly, his eyes a little distant and for a moment she doubted that his thoughts were on her. Then he reached out and took her sandals from her hand, taking it in his free one. They walked for a little longer, swinging their hands and kicking water up at each other, giggling and laughing. As Rilton kicked up a larger spray of water, Sarah let go of his hand and ran up the beach, laughing so much that she could barely stay on her feet. Rilton caught her quickly and they both fell onto the sand, Rilton was holding Sarah in his arms as they both laughed breathlessly, desperately trying to catch their breath, yet giggling each time they looked at each other.

Finally they calmed down enough to sit up, Rilton put his arm around Sarah's shoulder as they watch the setting sun over the sea, then as the bottom of the large orange orb seemed to touch the ocean they stood, still hand in hand and began to walk back to the palace as the sounds of new revelries and music began to reach their ears. Sarah hitched her skirt up in her free hand again as they walked, seeing the sand that clung to her feet as she moved, enjoying the way that it felt between her toes. Yet as fun as this evening had been, Sarah could not help but feel that something was going wrong, _very_ wrong back at the Goblin Castle. Whatever it was, it was calling to her and she knew that it was time.

"Rilton," she muttered, not quite sure how to tell him.

"Yes, Sarah?" He asked, she paused and then took her hand from his, hitching up her skirt a little more.

"I think it's time I went home," she stopped walking as she noticed how she had referred to the place she had been taken to. It took him a moment to realise that she had stopped walking and he turned to look at her. "I meant back to the Goblin Castle," she elaborated and he smiled tightly.

"I know what you meant." He waited for her to catch up with him and held his hand out to her again, she shook her head and he shrugged, though she could see the hurt in his eyes. "Why go back?" He asked after a moment. "You know that he'll just send you back to the kitchens."

"Laundry, Rilton, I was in the _laundry_." Granted it was nothing for her to be proud of but it was all that she had. "I fit in there, I have a job and friends. I'll be safe there."

"You don't feel safe here?" There it was again, the hurt that flashed through his eyes as he found her rejecting something of his.

"That's not what I meant. But now that you mention it, your father isn't exactly a man to take _'no'_ for an answer. You know that you can't always be there." She tried to keep her tone reasonable but could not keep the irritation at Rilton's refusal to see her point from showing a little.

"But I _can_ be there, I _want_ to be." He stopped them again, turning and taking her hand into his to stop her from walking away as he continued to talk. "I want you to be here with me, _always_. I don't want you to go back to him to be mistreated and worked to death. I hate that he ignores you and he doesn't deserve to have you go back to him. Please stay with me, Sarah?" His earnest expression made her take a step backwards as it told her what he was asking her.

"Rilton, I can't, I..." she stopped and fell silent, starting to walk away from him, feeling the pull of their still joined hands.

"Sarah, I l..."

"Don't say it!" She cut him off, tears in her eyes. "Just _don't!_ Don't ruin what we already have, please!" She pulled her hand from his and turned back to look at him, pushing her hands back through her loose hair, catching it in her fists in frustration. "I _promised_ him I would go back, Rilton."

"I'll take you, we can tell him together." There was an air of desperation about him and his eyes seemed to be holding all the fear that sudden and unexpected rejection can cause.

"_No_! We won't be telling him _anything_ because there is _nothing_ to tell!" She turned and took a few more steps away from him, still running her hands through her hair. "Just, _please_, take me home, Rilton."

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Ades looked at his king, his pale eyes full of worry and a small measure of fear about the news he was now to deliver. Jareth tugged at one of his gloves and turned to look at the healer.

"Well?" He demanded with a measure of impatience, not happy to be back in the infirmary, the place which was the source of so many memories, both good and bad.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesty, one of the maids found her in her study this morning, unconscious and barely breathing. We've managed to revive her, but I don't think that she will survive much longer." To Ades surprise, Jareth managed to keep his face blank, not letting any hint of what he may have been feeling show. Even his mismatched eyes were cold and it made Ades shudder to look at him.

"_Why_ did this happen?" Only the slight tremor in Jareth's voice gave away his worry for his old friend and mentor.

"Age," Ades speculated, "stress, probably a combination of both. You have to remember that she was old when you were born, Majesty, if I can be honest, I would have to say that I am surprised that she has lived for as long as she has. It should be impossible for a Goblin."

"Is there anything you can do?" His voice was strong this time, he had mastered the worry there and had allowed it to travel to his mismatched eyes.

"No," Ades hung his head. "I am truly sorry, Sire. All I can do is make her last few days as comfortable as possible. The end, I fear, is nearer than either of us really wants to believe. Has she any family?"

"No, she never married."

"Then go to her, keep her company. You are all she has and no one should ever die alone."

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Sarah paced her chambers, her bag with all of her personal belongings was waiting by the door. She wore the same simple grey maids dress that she had arrived in and she had left the elaborate gowns and fine clothes she had locked away in the wardrobe, certain that once she returned to the Goblin Castle she would have no need of them. She scowled out at the window, bright sunlight flooded through and shone onto the large comfortable chair that was sat by the fireplace. She plopped into it with an irritated sigh and picked at the heavy red fabric of the arm, glancing every now and again at the door. Eventually she stood again and resumed her pacing, only stopping when she heard a sound and then starting again when she realised it was probably a maid and not the wayward prince.

"Where the _hell_ is he?" She demanded, not surprised when she received no answer.

A short time later Rilton finally did appear, his face grave and his whole manner was apprehensive, just as it had been all of the evening before, adding to the air of disarray that surround the normally immaculate Fae, it worried her.

"I'm sorry, Sarah, it took a little longer to contact my cousin than I would have liked." He apologised to her, pushing his sleeves up his arms a little nervously, exposing the scars on his arms from when he had given his blood for her cure, then he noticed her gaze and he pulled the sleeves down again, smoothing out the wrinkles and avoiding meeting her eyes.

"What's wrong?" Sarah immediately remembered her sense of foreboding the day before.

"I don't know. Jareth wouldn't tell me and that's got me more than a little worried. Maybe you shouldn't go back today." Despite her words the day before, Rilton was still clinging to the idea that he could persuade her to stay with him.

"Rilton, we've been through this, I _am_ going back to the Goblin Castle today." He looked away, crestfallen and she went to him, taking his hand in hers. "I'm sorry, Rilton, my time here with you has been wonderful, but... I don't belong here."

"You don't belong _there_ either, Sarah, not where's he's put you. You're the only person _ever_ to defeat the Labyrinth. You should be _celebrated_ not punished." Sarah laughed softly then became serious.

"I don't want this to become the same old argument, Rilton. I destroyed the castle and the city and whether it was done knowingly or not, you don't celebrate the cause of a disaster. Please take me home? If there is something wrong then I should be there. It's time for my holiday to end." The elf finally nodded and picked up her small bag in one hand and wrapped his arm around her waist, taking the opportunity to pull her close.

"What about your other clothes?"

"I'll never have a chance to wear them, leave them here." He nodded and in a puff of glitter and sparkles, they were gone.

_Bad Rilton, stupid idiot elf boy! Grr! I know it was necessary that I did it, an dno I'm not going to tell you why yet, but he's an idiot all the same. Can you tell that I wrote the first part of this chapter on the beach, in the sunlight? With no tourists sings happily No tourists, no tourists, no flaming emmetts! Enough of my Cornish whining and rambling (though I swear if one more person comes into work and tells me that they "lost their glasses in the sea", I'll scream. What do they wear them in the sea for anyway?) Rant over, I know that it was unrelated, but when you hear it five times a day everyday for three months..._

_R&R, you know how much happier they make me!_

_Artemis_


	23. Chapter 23

_Woot! A long chapter and another update, I'm on fire! Actually I'm updating now becasue I won't be able to until Wednesdday after this, figured I would make youwait as little time as possible. Thanks go out to: dreagon-fire, Jeannie, sweetbabby33, notwritten, yodeladyhoo, forward-but-sincere-pirate, LaylaHarper, FireShifter, Sintar and silver.shadow.23. To all those I may have missed, I'm sorry, I'm not getting any alerts at the moment so I haven't seen them. Oh, and remember that what is about to happen is necessary, I know you won't like it, but please don't hurt me!!_

Chapter Twenty-Three: Endings

Sarah and Rilton appeared in a soft puff of light and smoke in Jareth's study, his _deserted_ study. Rilton looked around him frowning, his cousin should have been there to greet them, yet now that they had arrived, and on time, he was nowhere to be seen. He looked over at Sarah and could not miss the hurt in her glorious green eyes as she looked around the empty room. Then she sighed heavily and he felt her straighten in his arms, trying to brush off the hurt.

"Well, he obviously decided I wasn't important enough to wait for," she shrugged.

"Maybe he had to answer a summons," Rilton offered, something to take the pain away a little, not sure _why_ he was bothering. Jareth did not deserve Sarah.

"Maybe," her reply was a little dubious and he could not help but flinch at her acceptance of her doubts and hurt feelings. The smile she offered him when she turned her head to meet his eyes held none of the sparkle that he had seen there since she had gone with him to his home, he wondered if it was his own or Jareth's actions that had made it fade. "Come on," she said then, pulling away from his warm embrace and walking to the door. He watched her go with a momentary pang of sorrow at the stiff way she held herself and then followed her to her room, noting the reluctance with which to opened the door the room she had not slept in for nearly two months.

The first thing Sarah had expected to see upon opening the door was a room devoid of life, the beds made with the sheets tucked crisply under the mattress just in case Clara decided on an inspection, the table tucked up against the wall and soft cushions on the flat tops of the trunks at the ends of the bed. She did not expect to see Nadine in there at all, let alone curled up on top of her bed, in the fetal position, sobbing. She stared at her friend for just a moment before going to the bed and sitting next to her. Nadine barely moved, did not even register that her friend had entered the room until Sarah laid a gentle hand on her shoulder. She flinched away from the contact and then turned her tear stained face up to look and see who it was.

"Sarah?" She questioned and flung herself at her friend with a loud cry and the tears began to fall anew as she clung to the other woman.

"Nadine, what happened? Was it Marissa? The King?" Sarah could feel Nadine's tears soaking through her dress, then felt the laundry maid shake her head. "Then who? What?"

"I found her, Sarah, and she was so still and not really breathing. She looked so _old_ and frail! Now she's _dying_ and I don't know what to _do_!" Sarah frowned but rocked Nadine as she babbled out the story.

"Who?"

"_Clara_! She's dying and the Healer sent me away, he won't tell me what's going on and the King's yelling at everyone and you weren't here and I just don't know what to do!" The hysterical woman in Sarah's arms was so unlike her level headed friend that Sarah wondered if there was not perhaps something more to the story than Nadine was letting on. None of the maids were really close enough to Clara for them to call her a friend. Sarah thought of the wizened old goblin more as the eccentric aunt that the children loved to visit, but that the parents hated, than as a friend or supervisor. Yet she could see why Nadine was so upset. The maids all trusted Clara to do what was best for them despite what the King might think and in an obscure way they loved her. She had been there for longer than most of the castle's inhabitants could remember, lived longer than any in the castle could know and she seemed to have been as eternal to them as the Labyrinth itself. Yet even this extraordinarily strong creature had to become the victim of time and old age. This was her time and Sarah found herself on the verge of tears as she thought on it.

Rilton stood awkwardly in the doorway, watching as Sarah tried to comfort her friend whilst holding her own tears in check. He wanted to go to her and take her in his arms, tell her that all would be well and hold her as he tried to absorb her pain. As he watched in the door he knew that at this moment he could not, because if he did he would have two women to comfort. Selfish as it sounded, Sarah was his main concern and that meant that he would force Nadine's care and comfort to take a back shelf. He leant there watching for a long time as Sarah comforted her friend until Nadine finally cried herself to sleep, though it could have been no more than ten minutes.

"I have to get to the infirmary," Sarah's movements were wooden as she walked past him, her face pale yet determined as she strode through the corridor, looking for one person and one person only. The one who had played his own small part in comforting her in her own hour of need.

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Jareth did not look at the infirmary door when he heard it open behind him. The sound barely even registered as he looked at the frail form of his friend and mentor. Clara's large eyes were closed and you could only see that she was still breathing if you looked at her very closely. The goblin was so tiny that she was almost lost in the large bed, for a brief time when he had first seen her, Jareth had been worried that the blankets would smother her. Ades had reassured him that they did not. He had then gone on the explain the physical symptoms of her illness that all had seen but never really picked up on. Clara had lost a lot of weight in the last month and a half, since she had helped Jareth keep Sarah alive with the ancient and forbidden magic, she had begun to lean more and more heavily on her stick as she walked and could not walk for a long period of time without becoming out of breath. When Jareth had questioned the maid who had found her, he discovered that she had been to see Clara, partly to find out when Sarah would return and partly because she had not seen Clara about the servants living area at any time to ask her.

Thinking of Sarah, he knew that it was she who had entered. The scent of Rilton's magic, mingled with his own, rolled off her, detectable only because she was so close to him, only because he had always known that there would be a possibility that she would absorb some of the magic that the cousins possessed without knowing, magic that they had given so freely to save her. Now she was more than a simple human, yet less than a Fae. In truth he was not sure what she was. He wondered, as he continued to gaze at Clara, feeling Sarah's questioning eyes in his back, if she was angry with him for not greeting her in the study as was customary. There was no rustling of silks, no clicking of sharp heals, as she came towards him, only the soft shuffle of leather boots and the movement of a simple cotton dress. Then he felt her hand on his shoulder and for the first time since he had sat on the stool by Clara's bed, he moved.

"I'm so sorry," Sarah whispered, squeezing his shoulder. He looked into her emerald eyes and he could see the worry and pain there, but she had come back to him, in his hour of need, and she had returned in the simple grey maids dress, not wearing one of any number of exotic gowns that Rilton _must_ have given to her during her stay.

"Thank you," he placed his hand over hers and squeezed it in return as Rilton came to the other side of the bed, beckoning Sarah to him for a moment. Jareth frowned when Sarah nodded and went to Rilton, they began to talk in hushed voices and try though he might, he could not quite hear them.

Rilton's voice was barely audible when he spoke to Sarah, casting long glances at his cousin, who had gone back to watching Clara.

"I'm going to return to the Palace, Sarah. I don't think that I can be of any use here at the moment."

"But what about Jareth?" She whispered back, glancing at the King for a second, turning away when he looked back at them.

"I think he has everything that he needs right here, Sarah. I know that you'll look after him better than I can." Rilton hated to leave her with Jareth, where she might be able to build on any feelings that it seemed she already had for him. He would much rather have taken her back to the Elf Palace and spent more time persuading her that staying with him for the rest of their lives was the best thing for her, instead of this slaves life that Jareth seemed to have planned. When Rilton really thought about it, however, he realised that he just didn't want to run the risk of losing out to his cousin and that the thought of that rivalry over a girl scared him more than it ought. "I'm going to say my goodbyes and leave. Look after yourself." He pulled her close and placed a tender kiss on her forehead. "Don't forget to write." He whispered and went to his cousin as Sarah kept a respectful distance, not missing the scowl on Jareth's face as Rilton approached.

Jareth had watched them whisper, he had tried so hard to make out the words but had been unable to, their soft voices avoiding even _his_ sharp ears. However, when Rilton pressed his lips to Sarah's forehead and she closed her eyes as a sad smile crossed her face, he immediately felt that he had made a mistake allowing Sarah to go with Rilton, because watching the sorrow on her face deepen as his cousin came over, he decided that he had lost her to Rilton. His heart broke inside him, he felt used and betrayed, and as hard as he had tried, it had all come to naught.

"Cousin," Rilton sketched a quick bow, mistaking the sorrow on Jareth's face and the hardening of his features to be directed at Clara's failing health, "I'll take my leave of you, I think we both know that I will be of no use here." Jareth gave him a curt nod, not trusting his voice, but knowing that he would actually have to speak, because Rilton was his friend and his blood.

"Thank you for bringing Sarah back, Rilton, I'm sorry I did not meet you when you arrived." His voice was distant, but Rilton accepted what he had been offered, still assuming that Jareth's cool demeanor and distant eyes were down to Clara. He sketched another bow and left quickly. In moments Sarah was at his side, stood silently, one of her hands on his shoulder as she reached and took one of Clara's frail paws in her other. The goblin matron's eyes fluttered and for the first time since she had been found by Nadine, she regained consciousness.

"Sarah," she breathed as she recognised the closest person to her, then saw Jareth anxiously watching her, one hand over the hand that Sarah still had rested on his shoulder. "Dear Child-King," she blinked slowly, her mind trying to process what it was seeing. "I apologise..."

"You have nothing to apologise for, Clara, just you concentrate on getting well." Jareth assured her and the goblin managed a weak chuckle.

"That is one order I cannot obey." She turned her eyes on Sarah. "Look after him." She instructed and closed her eyes again. They did not reopen and for a second, Sarah thought that the little goblin had died. Then she saw the barely discernable rise and fall of her chest and breathed a small sigh of relief, even though she knew that it could not be much longer.

Finally, nearly three hours later, Sarah and Jareth were still in the same position they had been when Clara had woken for such a brief time, Clara passed. Neither the king nor the girl were really sure when she drew her last breath or how long it had been since she had exhaled for the last time, just that it had happened. Sarah looked down at her companion, he was silent, no word had passed his lips since Ades had announced that she was gone, he had simply bowed his head. Sarah knelt next to him and looked up into his face, and for the first time since she had known him, both now and the first time she had been to the Labyrinth, she saw tears of genuine pain there, grief in his eyes and the sorrow that brought to her heart was greater than anything she had known she could feel for him. With a trembling hand she reached out and touched his cheek, guiding him to look her in the eyes, trying to will his pain away and failing.

"I'm so sorry," she breathed, then, and felt, rather than saw, him go slightly rigid. He did not reply, he merely stood and nodded to her, his whole demeanor screaming that something was off more than just Clara's death. He left, then, did not speak a word, did not look at anybody, he simply left, silent and brooding, once again the same king that the inhabitants had come to know and fear after Sarah had defeated him. She watched him leave, her heart in her eyes, her hand to her lips, feeling the sorrow around him intensify with each passing second and helpless to do anything about it.

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Clara's funeral was a simple one, attended only by a few of the Taken, Jareth, Torel and his wife. Sarah was among those in attendance, seated just across from the king, watching all the sorrow he must feel flicker across his face as he watched the body of his mentor burn upon the traditional goblin funeral pyre in the center of the Goddess' temple. Her eyes drifted between the fire and the king, unable to focus on the pyre, yet not wishing to look at Jareth for too long, for fear of her watching eyes drawing his attention to her.

Jareth watched as the vessel that had once held the soul of his mentor burned. Every now and again he could feel Sarah's anxious eyes burning into him, though whether it was out of concern for him or the need to get away, he no longer knew the difference. He could no longer tell if what was between Sarah and Rilton was purely friendship, or love of the deepest kind and it cut into his soul, he could feel his heart beginning to shatter and his soul burning with the flickering light of the fire.

They sat in the large circular room, looking down from the balconies as the priest of the goddess read the prayers over burning body in the center. The thick smoke rose up through the circular opening in the ceiling and Jareth saw Sarah's eyes follow it upwards, once again distracted from the words of the priest. Was it Rilton that she thought of?

After many hours of watching and waiting, sending prayers to the soul that had been released from the hollow cask that had been its home, the fires began to dim and the watchers trouped out, heads bowed and spirits low. Sarah lingered, waiting for Jareth, falling in beside him and walking with him in silence as the made their way back to the castle in the final procession of the funeral. As they reached the gate, Jareth looked down on the woman who was breaking his heart.

"Sarah, I would appreciate it if you would join me in my study." She nodded, silent, startled at the coldness in his tone. He held out his arm to her and she placed her hand there, more aware of the protocol since her time away with Rilton than she had been before. They walked together, in complete and awkward silence, neither really sure what to say and Sarah terrified of this cold Jareth, the same one that had met her after he had taken her form the falling plane. The Jareth who did not seem to care if she lived or died. Yet despite that she still longed for him to tell her that everything between them would be ok, that it would go back to how it was before she went away.

He opened the door to his study and ushered her inside, his face stony as he closed the door behind him and went to the window. He leant there for a long while silent as he stared over the city, a place that had come so far in such a short time. Finally he spoke, his voice lifeless.

"I suppose you will be wanting to return to the Elf Palace, would you have me summon my cousin, or will you do it yourself?"

"I'm staying here," her confusion was evident and she took a step towards him. "Jareth, I don't understand..."

"You will address me as 'Your Majesty' or 'Sire' for the time you remain here!" He snapped, cutting her off and feeling another piece of his heart shatter at the hurt look in her eyes, the way she took a step back and shook her head, trying to deny what he had just said to her, the way that he had implied that she meant nothing to him. "Do not take me for a fool, Sarah, I am not."

"You are," she breathed and regretted it the instant he turned around, his eyes black with fury. "Why are you doing this? Why are you pushing me away? Do you regret the time we spent together?"

"No," he backed down a little, passing his hand over his eyes, tired and alone. "I do not regret the time we had together. But I was blind, now I see it all so clearly, everything was right in front of my face." He turned back to the window. "Return to your duties, inform Vilae when you wish to return to the elves, she will organise it." Sarah glared at him, tempted by his offer. "Just know, if you go, you will never be allowed to return." His final words decided her and she curtseyed.

"I understand, _sire_," her voice mocked him as she dipped low and gracefully, he bowed, brief, curt and painful, but the things that they had shared together made him show her that little bit of consideration. Then she turned and left the room and Jareth could not help but see the tears on her cheeks as she fled.

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Sarah sat on her bed, the piece of white linen, one of Rilton's handkerchiefs held tightly in her hand, soaking with the tears that she had shed and were still falling. What had she done wrong? Why did her hate her so now that she had returned?

True she had returned on the same day that Clara had died. She had returned in Rilton's arms. Yet she was simply friends with the Elf Prince, why should that bother Jareth? Try as she might she could not find the answer to that question and she did not want to go to Jareth again and ask him, fearing the temper that he had displayed all too often when she had defied him.

This brought up another question, why did she care so much what he thought of her? Why did she crave his good opinion so? She could not answer, not truthfully and that scared her more than Jareth's temper or harsh words. She did not want to believe that she could be foolish enough to fall for him again.

"I won't be that stupid," she told herself, "I won't be."

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Jareth paced his study, angry with himself and confused all the more. If Sarah were so eager to be with Rilton, why was she so upset when Jareth told her to leave? He found that at this moment, probably more than he thought he ever would, he missed Clara's council, he even missed her freedom with her walking stick. He was certain that by now his legs would be tingling as a result of a great many strikes of the stick. She would have told him how foolish he was to push her away, how he should value her friendship, even if he could not master her heart.

He sighed and went to the window, his restless eyes roaming once again over the city at the gates of his castle. So much destruction caused by the ignorance of one girl, so much pain caused by such tempting innocence. He glanced behind him and looked back at the spot she had been standing in, silent as he had treated her with such unreasonable disdain. Yet he was so upset at the development he saw between the two, between his cousin and Sarah. It was destroying him to feel his cousin's betrayal, that Rilton had also set his sights on the woman Jareth so wanted, that Rilton seemed to have won her heart so completely that he had no fear of allowing her to stay at the Goblin Castle, no fear that Jareth would try to usurp his place in her heart, cut deeper than any knife. He looked away then, not liking the thoughts that looking at the city would bring.

He could not be with her, she would never deny the feelings that being with Rilton seemed to have created within her. He could not see her, he did not want to. He did not wish to look at her and see the thing that he wanted to be his so much and that he could not have. He did not understand when his feelings towards her had changed, when they had gone from the hate that he had thought would consume him, to the love that he had always felt for her.

With a sigh and a growl for the thoughts that the days events had lead to he launched himself out of the window. He fell several feet before transforming into his barn owl form and soaring away across the night.

_So both of them are idiots. Jareth has taken his observations of Sarah and Rilton, put two and two together and made five. He is a silly silly boy! As much fun as beating Jareth with sticks is, I like to make him miserable too, how mean am I? This was necessary though, there are things that I want to happen that can't if Sarah and Jareth are still really good friends. We may see a bit more of Rilton in the next chapter and since everyone wants it so much, I'm going to try and find a way to bring Elissa (his mother) into it as well, but I won't make any promises. Anyway, R&R, I'll update on Wednesday so until then._

_Artemis_


	24. Chapter 24

_I have returned to updat for yourreading pleasure! I have also lost my mind a little, though whether you xan lose something you never had is another matter. Anyway, I have to send my thanks out to Mint Tea Rose, janeitesarah, FireShifter, sweetbabby33, yodeladyhoo, Catwoman99, ScarlethasPheonixpower, InuLvr7, notwritten, Jeannie, silver.shadow.32 and Dragoon-Yue. All amazing people. By the way, is anyone getting their alerts? I haven't heard anything for nearly two weeks and I'm getting a little worried. Onwards!_

Chapter Twenty-four: Changes.

Marissa paced her chambers, the room a riot of pinks and yellows, lilacs and greens. To any sane person in possession of more than one working brain cell it would look tasteless and gaudy. To Marissa, it was the very pinnacle of good taste and fashion. Near the large fire, now lit to ward off the encroaching chill of the late autumn days, was a small table and chair, set for one and awaiting the arrival of the one thing that would make the morning perfect, _breakfast_. Marissa was not known to be one to be kept waiting for anything, except where Jareth was concerned, and that she had been waiting for nearly an hour for a meal that should have arrived long before that was unacceptable. She decided that while she may not have liked Clara, at least she had kept the maids in line. Since her death nearly two months ago, the service had gone down hill.

The door to the servants corridors opened and the latest in a long list of maids stumbled in, balancing a large silver tray on one arm as she struggled. She sighed, this one was even worse than the last had been. The china on the tray rattled as mugs, plates and pots came into contact, caused by the girls shaking. Marissa threw a look in her direction and the terrified girls trembles increased until the tray finally slid from her hands. The Queen looked at the mess of eggs, bacon, porridge and tea on the floor, the disgusting mass slowly beginning to congeal as she stared at it. The frightened girls hands had clamped over her mouth in an effort to stop her sobs of apology from being audible to the insane queen. Marissa raised her hand as if to strike the pathetic woman in front of her, then thought the better of it. Jareth had been in a vile mood during the last couple of months and it would not do to have his wrath turned upon her.

"Get out!" She shouted, kicking a tea pot in the girls direction. She flinched and began to inch away. "Get out, get out, _get __**out**_!" Marissa watched her flee, a twisted grin on her face as she began to pace again, waiting to see if the maid would return with another clinking tray of breakfast.

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Rilton read through the letter that Sarah had sent him, it had been nearly two months since he had left her back in his cousin's care and what he was reading worried him. It seemed that things between Sarah and his cousin had regressed. Far from Jareth continuing to be the gentleman that he had become towards her, he had distanced himself from her and Rilton could not figure out why. Sarah had not mentioned an argument, nor had he been anything but civil, he had simply distanced himself from her.

-_**I don't know why he's been so moody recently, Rilton, he's just so distant now. We **_**talk**_** but he never seems to hear me. I miss having you around, we always had fun.**_- He laughed, remembering their time together both at the Goblin Castle and the Elf Summer Palace. He looked over at the fire, his mother was sat there, her mismatched eyes gazing sorrowfully at the flickering flames and her long blonde hair, a similar colour to his cousins, was elegantly styled and curled. Rilton sighed at the sorrow in her features, to lose first her twin, and then her husband, one to plague and another to adultery, had cut into her deeper than anything he knew. He shook his head and began to read again.

-_**I think that Marissa has finally lost what little is left of her mind, since Clara died she's scared off three maids and hurt several others. Jareth has healed them each time without making a fuss, but you have no idea how hard it is to get the girls to go to him. Vilae's in charge now, but things don't seem to run as smoothly with her. I guess we'll get used to her in time, but it would be easier if Marissa stopped being so violent and got a handle on her temper. I miss you, Rilton, things were always easier when you were around, but I shouldn't dwell, what's said is said and what's done is done.**_- She had ended the letter there and Rilton sighed again as he set it to one side and put his head in his hands.

"What troubles you, my son?" A soft voice seemed to whisper from the fire side. He looked at his mother, Elissa, a gentle smile played about the corners of her lips and she reached a soft hand out to touch his cheek. "Has my wayward boy finally learnt of love?" She teased. He moved his hand to cover hers and allowed himself one more sigh before he stood and went to stand at the window, adopting his cousin's favourite position of staring moodily at the scenes unfolding below.

This high in the mountains, snow was already falling, covering the ground in a light sprinkling of cold dust that dotted the grass, exposing the delicate green blades. Half dead flowers poked up, tiny spots of browning brilliance in a sea of green and white. The members of his mother's court, all unwaveringly loyal to Elissa, were walking together outside, their dress somewhat more modest than the normal attire of Alon's loyal, and larger, court, partly due to the weather, and partly because that was the way Elissa preferred it. Rilton liked his mother's court and he was upset by the thought that in a matter of days his father would be there, disturbing the peace and tranquility, not only of the Winter Castle, but of his mother's own mind.

"Rilton?" His mother whispered his name and he looked back at her. "Who is she? I haven't seen that expression since Jareth met Sarah, the first time she ran."

"I forgot you were there, what was she like?"

"Spoiled, short tempered, stubborn, perfectly suited to your cousin really." Elissa reminisced, her mismatched eyes lighting up a little as she thought about the way Jareth had reacted to Sarah. The way that he had been cursing her stubborn tendencies one moment and talking about how it made her eyes light up and dance with fire, the next. She had been in his study most of the time, visitors were not allowed to interact with the runners or the taken children, and when she had realised that Sarah might be the one to make it to the center and win, Elissa had left, with some quiet advice to her nephew about love. Evidently he had ignored her. "Why the sudden interest?"

"I met her when I was there. She was... amazing." He sighed again and Elissa came to her feet, crossing to him and resting a light hand on his shoulder.

"Rilton... tell me it's not..."

"Sarah, I'm sorry, mother," he rested his head against the cool glass, "I never meant to go up against Jareth, I know that it can't end well, but there's something about her that..."

"You sound just like he did. Rilton, you know that this will end badly, are you going to continue to pursue her?" She smiled. "You'll have a fight on your hands, good luck with that." She laughed.

"This isn't funny." He muttered petulantly.

"Of course not, Rilton, this is love. It isn't funny." Yet he could not miss the amused twinkle in her eyes as she said it.

"How can you still believe in love, after everything father has done?"

"Because," her eyes clouded, "even after everything, I still love him and I will always love him, you can't control your heart. Love will come where it will and if you're really lucky, it will be returned. Not all of us are that lucky, not the first time, not all the time. It comes and it goes, trust in it and it will find you."

"She doesn't love me," he sighed after a moment, listening to the words of his mother, the same words that she had offered Jareth all those years ago.

"Maybe not now, but it may come." Rilton shook his head then went to the desk.

" I have a letter to write."

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Sarah and Nadine were sat in the kitchen, talking quietly over a cup of tea. Sarah had relaxed back into her old job with enviable ease, enjoying her time back with her friends, glad that she had found people she could trust not to have an ulterior motive for caring about her. Nadine said something that made Sarah giggle and then they both fell silent, the maid uncomfortable over what she was about to say.

"Sarah..." she paused as her friend looked at her, her eyes enquiring. "I heard a rumour this morning, about you and Prince Rilton." Sarah raised an eyebrow.

"What about that deranged lunatic and I?" She asked with a small smile, beginning to guess what people had been saying.

"That you're getting married." Nadine said after a moment longer of silence. "They say that's why the King is so angry, because you're going to marry his cousin and neither of you approached him to ask his permission."

Sarah laughed at her, drops of tea splashing from her cup onto her dress as her mirth shook her. "We need his permission now?" She gasped around her giggles.

"He _is_ our king, Sarah, you wished yourself to him."

"I wished myself to the goblins, Nadine, it's hardly the same thing."

"It is, he is their king and without a family you fall into his care. He is the one who gets to decide who you marry." Sarah looked at her in silence, she did not want to tell Nadine about the argument she and Jareth had on the evening of Clara's funeral. She did not want to tell her friend that she was slowly dying inside each day, with every snide look and burning gaze. With all of the whispers around her and the fear that he would tire of her continued presence and send her to Rilton whether she liked it or not.

"He asked me," she muttered then, not sure who was listening and not wanting it to get around. "I turned him down." Nadine's eyes went wide and she sat quietly at the table staring into her tea. "Say something."

"You're an idiot." Nadine said finally. "You're a total idiot."

"What?"

"You turned down the Elf Prince, the future king, to work in the laundry for the rest of time. Are you insane?"

"I don't love him, not that way."

"_Love_? Sarah, love doesn't come into it! This was you're chance to get out!"

"Maybe I don't want out," Sarah replied, a little shocked at her friends cynicism. "Maybe I'm happy where I am."

"Yes, Sarah, and I'm Queen Marissa in disguise!" Nadine snapped. Sarah simply looked at her, her emerald eyes searching those of her friend but prevented from replying as the door burst open and one of the chamber maids ran in, tears streaming down her cheeks as she went to the cook and began to talk rapidly, her voice gradually getting higher pitched as she spoke. Vilae came in shortly afterwards, her whole demeanor one of irritation and worry.

The cook had begun to pile more food onto plates and placed those plates and a pot of tea onto a large silver tray. The girl, Hesra, trembled as she picked up the tray and Vilae went to her, taking it from her and setting it back on the table.

"You're in no condition to take that. I'm having you reassigned." Hesra's eyes were full of thanks as she looked up at the Fae woman. "Go to your room, calm down, wash your face, then report to the laundry for your new duties." She watched the girl run from the room and then turned and sighed. "Now what am I supposed to do?" She muttered glaring at the tray. "It was hard enough whilst Clara was alive but now... that Fairy has chased off every potential maid we have." Sarah glanced over at Nadine, the woman was busily tidying away her and Sarah's tea things, desperate not to be noticed. Vilae looked their way and Sarah could have sworn that she saw Nadine shrink more into herself.

"I'll take it," she offered, holding out her hands for the tray.

"I don't think the King would approve, Sarah," Vilae sounded dubious.

"It'll only be until you find someone else. I'll be fine, I can take care of myself." She picked up the tray and made her way to the queen's chambers.

_So then, next chapter we get the confrontation between Sarah and Marissa, how do we all think that will turn out? Since, meeting Elissa seemed such a popular idea I thought I would drop her in where she was, it seemed to fit and I wanted to show how Rilton was reacting to Sarah's refusal and Elissa's to his return. There was no point in showing the last two months, not much happened. To those of you worried about time, this leaves us with two months until Jareth has the opportunity to ge rid of Marissa. And yes, I do want to beat him some more with sticks, but that isn't Elissa's style so we'll just have to see what she does._

_On the note of updating, I won't be able to now until Tuesday, I'm at the beginning of a seven day stint at work and I won't have much time to write, I promise though that if I get the chapter done sooner, I'll post it up for you. Until next time_

_Artemis_


	25. Chapter 25

_Here we go, my promised update. I just finished it, aren't you lucky? Just looked at my reviews, wow, 291! I'm awed! you're all incredible. My thanks go out to Dragoon-Yue, Catwoman99, AvitarGirl, tankbbq, inksmudged, FaerieatHeart13, snip-snippet, Skyrere, The Canine Twins, LabyLvrPhx, silver.shadow.23, Anna McNarin, sweetbabby33, notwritten, InuLvr7, yodeladyhoo, Mint Tea Rose, janeitesarah, draegon-fire and Sintar! If I missed anyone, I'm sorry! Thank you all!_

Chapter Twenty-five: Visitors.

Sarah nudged the handle of the servants entrance to Marissa's chambers with her elbow as she pushed the door open with her foot, muttering softly about the tray being heavier than it looked and how did people manage to do this everyday anyway?

"Well it's about time!" A woman snapped and Sarah turned to look at the Goblin Queen properly for the first time. There was no denying that she was pretty, she could even have been beautiful if the expression in her pale grey eyes had been one of general good humor instead of malicious discontent and hatred, whether the hatred was aimed at her was another matter, Sarah doubted the woman even knew who she was.

"I should have you beaten for your tardiness!" Marissa's next words snapped her out of her reverie and she turned her attention to taking the tray to the table and setting it down, stepping carefully over the now nearly solid mess on the floor. She nodded to the Queen to show that she had heard her and moved away, once again avoiding the mess.

"Don't just step around it, you idiot, clean it up!" Marissa set her tea pot back down on the table with a crash and Sarah sighed when she saw the scowl her face. For a moment she contemplated just saying no, but the way that Marissa was holding the tiny cup of tea in her hand told Sarah that she was trying very hard not to throw it at her. Sarah knew that if that happened she would lash out in return, Jareth was angry enough with her at the moment, though she still was not quite sure why, and she did not want to run the risk of upsetting him further. She sighed and rolled her eyes, careful to keep her face turned away from the mad woman as she did it, not relishing the idea of putting herself in this kind of position, she could feel her anger at Marissa building as she picked up some of the larger pieces of broken crockery and using them to scoop the congealed mass onto the dented silver tray.

"You know," she muttered finally, not expecting to be heard, "this wouldn't be necessary if you hadn't scared Hesra so much."

"What?" Marissa shouted in reply and Sarah was glad that her back was still turned so that she did not see her wince. "Who are _you_ to tell _me_ how to behave?" She rose to her feet and came to stand by Sarah, the younger woman remained silent, apparently ignoring Marissa and still cleaning. In fact she was trying _very_ hard to keep control of her temper. "_Well_?" Marissa lashed out with a slippered foot, catching Sarah in the ribs, something inside her snapped and Sarah was on her feet in moments, her green eyes burning with fury. Marissa slapped her, not liking the way that this girl looked at her, not liking the way that she was eerily familiar.

"Oh, I just bet that made you feel really _good_, didn't it?" Sarah snapped, not showing a hint of her pain at Marissa's actions, eve though her cheek was now a brilliant red where Marissa's hand had made contact. "Made you feel great, powerful, hitting someone who can't hit back? You're _pathetic_!"

"How _dare_ you?" Marissa shrieked in reply. "My husband will have your head for this!" Sarah laughed, a chilling sound and oddly similar to Jareth's own laugh.

"Do you really think he'll care? You're even more delusional than I thought!" Marissa lashed out again and somehow Sarah was able to catch her arm before Marissa's hand made contact, digging her fingers into the Queen's delicate wrists, aware of how rough her own hands were even as she did it. "It's no wonder he doesn't love you." She hissed, knowing it was a low blow and not caring. Then she took a step back, bent and picked up the tray and left.

Marissa watched her go, angry yet impressed. Sarah was the first maid to stand up to her in nearly four hundred years, it was refreshing and annoying. What gave that girl the right to stand up to her? What made her think that Jareth would really give a damn about her? Yet she burned, power ran through her veins and Marissa recognised part of it as Jareth's. Was this the maid that he had spent so much time caring for? Why would he? Then she remembered, remembered where she had seen her before, why the girl thought she was good enough for the King to care about her. She was _Sarah_, the one who had beaten the Labyrinth, destroyed her home and not only won Jareth's heart, but crushed it too. Marissa was not sure whether to hate the woman or to admire her. But as she thought on it, she realised that Sarah had done something that she had not been able to, she had won Jareth's heart and had the courage, or stupidity, to stand up to her. Whatever it was that Sarah had, whatever hold she had over Jareth, Marissa wanted it and she would do anything to get it.

She looked at her now cold breakfast, shrugged and left to find her husband.

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Jareth looked up from the small mountains of paperwork that littered his desk and once again cursed the day that his father decided to introduce a public school system for the Goblins. They could all read and write, to a degree, though the spellings were often of a dubious nature. He scowled at one particularly poorly written petition, sighed and scrunched it into a ball, tossing it into the burning fire as he rested his head in his hands. He was tired, not sleeping well with the late night flights and his anguish over his loss. When he was not flying he would lie awake in his bed, staring up at the ceiling and wondering where he had gone wrong, just how had he lost out to Rilton?

He dragged his mind back from its exhausted rambling and turned back to his paperwork, pausing only rarely to throw the odd illegible petition into the fire. He continued in silence, sometimes looking out of the window and thinking about his future. Sometimes he even thought about his wife. It was not a pleasant thought. Thinking of whom...

The door banging open alerted him to the arrival of the last person that he really wanted to see, Marissa stormed in, her face flushed and her eyes flashing with barely suppressed anger. Jareth sighed and looked up at her from his desk, not bothering to stand.

"What do you want?" He asked, not at all gracious and he really just did not care. Marissa did not notice and she huffed before flouncing down onto one of the chairs in front of his desk and bestowing him with what she thought was a winning smile.

"I want a new maid."

"Go and see Vilae, she'll tell you what she has," he looked back at the sheet of paper in front of him, assuming that she would leave, happy with his answer.

"Oh no, dear husband, this maid, only you can assign to me, she is _yours_ after all."

"What are you talking about?" He asked, finally giving her his full attention, a cold feeling settling into the pit of his stomach as he realised who she was talking about. "Sarah." Even though he was hurting and although he was talking to his wife, her name still came from his lips as if it was a caress. Marissa seemed to chose not to notice.

"She's delightful, stubborn, fiery," there was a note of sarcasm in her tone. "I must insist, Jareth."

"No." He did not think about his reply, he simply said it.

"Oh come on, Jareth, what is she to you? She beat you and rejected you, showing remarkable foresight in that instance. You don't even talk to her anymore. What do you care?"

"Do I need a reason? It is not one that I would give you either way."

"Nonsense, Vilae already sent her to me once, and you know that I will work my way through any other I might be assigned until I get to her."

"You only have two months, Marissa," Jareth reminded her with a chill smile.

"I'll only need two weeks and you know it." Her own smile was colder and it cut into Jareth's heart. "I can hurt them, maim them, I will _destroy_ them, until you give me what I want! Will you really sacrifice all of those poor Taken women for the sake of _Sarah_? Do you think she will thank you for saving her at the expense of her friends? You're a weak minded fool!"

"You will watch how you address me, Marissa!" He leapt to his feet and glared at her. "Queen you may be, I may have married you in the temple, but you do not speak to me in that manner, am I clear?" He restrained himself with some difficulty, if Sarah could keep from striking Marissa then so could he. She smirked at him, glad that she had gotten a reaction, clearly seeing that he was restraining himself for the sake of the next girl to be sent her way. "I have refused..."

"You will let me have her, Jareth, because as long as she is going to marry your foolish cousin anyway, she is no longer your responsibility to protect. That job belongs to Rilton now. I have no intention of _harming _her," -_much_-

"I said no." He walked away from her. "This discussion is over."

"It's over when I say it is, Jareth, think of how her being here instead of with her fiancee is tormenting you! Think of how it hurts to have their love thrown in your face. She only stays because she is under some misguided belief that you are _friends_. She will leave that much more quickly once you hand her to me." He kept his back to her, not wanting to let her see how her words were tormenting him, how right she was. "You want her _gone_, husband, I can arrange that for you." She put a hand on his shoulder, he shrugged it away, disgusted by the physical contact.

"Marissa..." he found his resolve weakening. She was right, at this moment he would like nothing more than to be rid of Sarah, for her to go back to Rilton and be with him so that he could finally end this torment that weighed him down.

"Let me take her, Jareth," Marissa whispered.

"No."

"Make her mine."

"No."

"Give her to me." This time his only answer was a shrug, he bowed his head further and rubbed his face with his hand. Why was he even considering this? He loved her and to give her to Marissa would not be the actions of a man in love. Something stabbed in his chest, whether it was guilt or the shattered pieces of his broken heart he did not know, but what ever it was, he nodded, giving his consent to Marissa to help drive Sarah away from the castle and out of his life.

"Take her," he whispered finally, "do not hurt her, if you do, I will kill you!" Marissa smirked at him. She would not hurt Sarah physically, not yet, now was not the time and Sarah had something that she needed. She simply curtseyed, not caring when the King did not look at her, and left in silence, a cruel smile playing on her face. The sound of the door closing was one of triumph and Jareth stared out of the window, lost and alone, until a new voice rang out.

"Well _that_ was certainly interesting."

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Elissa walked through her sons living quarters, her pale face a mask of concern and exhaustion. Alon and his people had arrived the night before, they had celebrated well into the night and Andros had paraded his latest conquest around, allowing her all of the benefits of a queen whilst snubbing his wife. Rilton had left after only a few minutes and he had not been seen. Now as she passed from the reception room to his sleeping chamber, she could see that his bed had not been slept in and she doubted that he had been in the Underground at all for the last twelve hours. The only other place Rilton would go was his cousin's castle and Jareth and Rilton did not seem to be talking at the moment.

She sighed and turned to leave the room, she knew that he would show up eventually, but that did not stop her worry or her hurt. Not only had her husband abandoned her and flaunted his infidelities in front of the court and their entire kingdom, her own son had abandoned her in her hour of need. Some days she just was not sure if continued existence was worth the heart ache. As she passed the small table by the door, her eyes rested on the letter that Rilton had received from Sarah a few days ago, the letter that he had spent the last couple of days trying to find a way to reply to and out of curiosity and concern for both her son and her nephew, she picked it up and began to read.

_**- You asked how Jareth was the last time that you wrote. He misses you, I think, he never talks about you but you can see it in the way that he sometimes seems to turn to say something, or a glint that comes into his eyes as he's walking around some of the places we spent time together. I miss that time, Rilton, I miss the fun we had and I'm worried about Jareth. I wish he would tell me what he is thinking and feeling, but he doesn't. I barely see him anymore. I don't know why he's been so mood recently, Rilton, he's just so distant now. We **_**talk**_** but he never seems to hear me. I miss having you around, we always had fun. I'm so worried about him, he seems to be folding into himself, hiding from everything and everyone and I don't know what to do. I want him to talk to me, Rilton, I want to know that he's ok, I want things to go back to how they were.-**_

Elissa frowned, a moody Jareth was nothing new from the last eight years, but that Jareth was pushing away the woman she thought he loved was yet more cause for concern. Sarah's letter made it clear that she had some fond feelings for him, enough to care that he may be destroying himself set off alarm bells in her mind. Jareth was obviously not coping well with Sarah's presence and she had to know why. She set the letter back on the table, feeling a little guilty for reading Rilton's private mail and prying so deeply into her son's life, and wandered back into the reception room, sitting quietly by the window and staring out over what had been her favourite place. Now she could see her husband and his mistress walking through the pine grove and she sighed, a sound filled with pain.

"Mother?" Rilton was stood in the doorway, looking much the worse for wear.

"Where did you go last night?" She asked, already knowing the answer.

"Aboveground," he shrugged. Elissa shook her head but did not give him an reply, knowing her son's habits all too well. They were silent for a while and eventually she spoke.

"I think that I'm going to visit Jareth."

"Is that a good idea?"

"I think it might be. I want to see how he's coping now that Sarah is back and it's so close to the divorce. If you've finished writing that letter, I'll take it myself."

"Why?" He grinned at her, tilting his head, but the smile did not quite reach his eyes.

"Because I want an excuse to meet this woman who seems to have my two boys wrapped around her little fingers." Rilton glared at her and Elissa allowed herself a moment of laughter before becoming serious again.

"How long will you be gone for?"

"A day, nothing more. Do you have the letter?" Rilton patted his doublet, the pale blue fabric was spotted and splotched with things that Elissa really did not want to think about, and he pulled out a slightly crumpled letter. His mother frowned and Rilton had the decency to blush a little. "Honestly." She muttered as she took the packet, then shimmered and vanished in the same glittery puff that Rilton associated with Jareth.

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Elissa appeared in one of the high backed chairs by the fire of Jareth's study, in time to hear Jareth and Marissa's conversation about Sarah. Hearing Marissa say that Sarah was to marry Rilton nearly made her laugh out loud, but she checked the urge, remembering that, while Jareth might have been, Marissa was not an ally.

"Let me take her, Jareth," Marissa whispered.

"No."

"Make her mine."

"No."

"Give her to me." This time his only answer was a shrug, he bowed his head further and rubbed his face with his hand.

"Take her," he whispered finally, "do not hurt her, if you do, I will kill you!" Elissa listened to her leave, noticed the way that even the closing of the door seemed like a triumphant cry and spoke.

"Well _that_ was certainly interesting." She let all of her worry for his actions flow through her rich voice, standing to look at her nephew. His face was a picture, surprise mingled with worry. "Well aren't you going to greet me?"

"Aunt!" His voice held nothing but surprise, and perhaps a little fear. He could only think of three reasons for her being here and none of them were good. The first that she had come to meet Sarah before the wedding, the second that she was here to take Sarah back to Rilton and the third that she was here to break off the engagement. He actually hoped, for her sake, that it was the second, however much pain it would cause him. He stood for a few moments staring at her before moving to pull her into a bone crushing hug. "I've missed you, Aunt." He whispered. Elissa grinned a little sadly at him.

"I've missed you too, Nephew, mine, but I also need to breathe." He laughed and released her. She reached up and touched his cheek, not missing the sorrow in the way he stood or the expression in his eyes, the defeat that she had seen there for the last eight years was stronger than it had been before. She opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off with a question of his own.

"I suppose you're here to see Sarah?" There it was, the caress as he said her name, the feelings that he was trying so hard to hide, out for the world to see. His aunt simply smiled, ignoring the way he said her name.

"So you've learnt it too. Both of my wayward boys learning to love. I'm hoping to see her later, I have a letter to deliver from my son. But I wanted to talk to you first." Jareth nodded and sent a crystal to Vilae, ordering a pot of tea from the kitchen for his aunt as he lead her back to her seat. Elissa looked at him as he sat in the comfy chair across from her, he looked so tired and so far from the Fae she had known and helped to raise.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" The door opened and Vilae came in, balancing a tray on her arm as she closed it behind her. She put the tea things on the small table and turned to leave. Jareth raised a hand and stopped her, pulling her close and quietly telling her that Sarah was being reassigned to Marissa. Vilae's eyes went wide and she looked like she was about to object, but he shook his head, his eyes hard and finally she nodded and left. Elissa looked at her nephew for a long, quiet time before she answered his question.

"Your conversation with Marissa." He sighed and she could see that he was about to try and prevent her from continuing. "Let me finish, Jareth." She held up her hand and he slumped back in his seat. "Why?"

"I'm sorry?" He sat upright again, not used to having his decisions questioned. "What gives you the right to question me?"

"The concern of a loving aunt. The care of a woman who helped to raise you. Your own mother's twin. All of these things give me the right and I will not be denied what I want to know." Her gentle expression and relaxed position as she sipped her tea were betrayed by the steel in her voice. "I want to know, Jareth. Why give the woman you thought you loved over to someone like Marissa?"

"Because I have to. As much as I hate to admit it, Sarah would never forgive me if I let the other maids get hurt on her account. She would hate me for letting someone else be tortured to protect her." There was the defeat again, accompanied by pain as he rubbed a hand across the back of his neck. "She can take care of herself. Maybe..."

"'Maybe' what, Jareth? Talk to me, please? Why are you doing this to her? She will not thank you." She took his hand in hers, shocked that he was trembling.

"Maybe she will go back to Rilton, where she belongs." If Elissa had not been able to see how much his actions were affecting him, she would have laughed at the way he had believed the rumours that had obviously been spreading since Sarah had returned, but something in the way he was behaving made her wonder if he had thought there was something more between Sarah and her son long before that.

"She doesn't belong with Rilton, Jareth. She is where she is supposed to be."

"But... I thought... they're..." He pulled away from her. "They're _engaged_, Elissa!" This time she did laugh, she could not help it and as much as she wanted to stop herself, she continued.

"Jareth, I'm sorry, really I am, but... they _aren't_ engaged. They never were, from what my son has told me, he asked her and she refused. There is nothing between them but friendship now." She resisted the urge to call him an idiot.

"But... the letters, the rumours..."

"You _are_ slow today, Jareth, there was never anything between them, at least not on her side. It was all him. I'm actually quite looking forward to meeting her, somehow she's managed to get the two of you wrapped around her little fingers, I'd love to know how she did it!" She giggled, then became serious again. "Now that Clara's gone... I had hoped you would come to me for advice."

"With all you have to worry about? The way Andros treats you? I'm not going to put my problems on you!" He thought for a moment. "Goddess, Sarah! What am I going to do? I just gave her to Marissa!"

"I'll let you think about that. But remember what you told me, she will not thank you for sacrificing others for her sake." She set her tea cup to one side and stood. "Excuse me, I have a letter to deliver and you have some thinking to do."

"Thank you, Aunt. Will I see you again before you go?" She kissed his cheek.

"Of course." She went to the door and opened it, looking back at him once before she left. He had his head in his hands, his shoulders hunched. She closed the door with a sad sigh.

He listened to her leave, going to find Sarah, the one woman who could have been his. He knew that he had hurt her now, but what could he do? To remove her from Marissa's service would bring the Fairy's wrath down on not only the next maid, but Sarah and him too. He could not allow Sarah to be hurt. But what was he to do? How could he protect her? He hoped that Elissa could give him the answers.

_There you go, my little offering this week. Again, I'm going to have to ask you to wait until next tuesday for my next update, I've still got a busy time ahead and my schedule is looking to get busier as time goes on, please bear with me! So next we find out how Sarah reacts, this could be fun! And for those of you who were expecting a full blown fight. Sorry, it just did not work. You'll see why later. Until next time_

_Artemis_


	26. Chapter 26

_Ok, so here's your next chapter, and it's a little short, actually I'm not altogether happy with it but I can't get it much better so. Thanks go out to all those who have read and especially to my reviewers: Sintar, notwritten, AvitarGirl, yodeladyhoo, Anna McNarin, forward-but-sincere-pirate, FaerieatHeart13, Skyrere, Faeries Midwife, ScarlethasPheonixpower, fireshifter, aeenc, Catwoman99, silver.shadow.23, draegon-fire, Mint Tea Rose, snip-snippet, sweetbabby33, EDouble and inksmudged. Again you all inspire me. _

Chapter Twenty-six: Good Advice.

Sarah sat in her room, staring at her hands, despite the fact that she had left the Goblin Queen's quarters over an hour before, her hands were still shaking, badly. Something which amazed her. Her shaking had started shortly after she had left Marissa's chambers, the adrenaline draining quickly out of her system to leave her feeling weak and helpless. Vilae had seen her trembling, and the brilliant red mark on her cheek, and had sent her straight to her room to calm down. Sarah decided that she had gotten off lightly, Vilae would not let her go near Marissa again and Sarah had no intention of doing so. Despite her bravado earlier that day, she had to admit that she had been a little afraid of Jareth's wife.

A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts and she called out for her visitor to enter, expecting it to be Nadine or Hesra, for a moment she even managed to delude herself into believing that it might be Jareth. She was disappointed when the door opened and she saw Vilae enter.

"Sarah," the fae woman closed the door behind her and sat on Nadine's bed, facing the younger woman, her expression serious. "I've just been to see the King." Something in her tone made alarm bells start ringing in Sarah's head. "He has asked that you be reassigned and I want you to know that I _do not_ agree with his decision in the slightest, but be that as it may, we have our orders. I honestly have no idea what you did, or why he even agreed to it, Marissa has asked that you become her personal maid." Sarah's jaw dropped.

"_What_?" She demanded, standing and beginning to walk around the room, frustrated and confused. "What do you mean? Why the hell would Marissa want me?"

"I don't know. The King wouldn't tell me. It may be that even _he_ doesn't know. From what I do know, Marissa asked and he agreed." Vilae watched her pace.

"How could he do this? He tells me that he's keeping me away from Marissa to protect me and then he goes and throws me at her! I don't understand!" She pushed her bandana back off her hair, today the flimsy piece of cloth was green, and used her other hand to run her fingers through her hair, then began to wring the bandana with her hands, twisting and creasing the delicate silk. "Oh Goddess, don't tell me that he really believes those ridiculous rumours!"

"Sarah, only the King can tell you what you want to know. However, let me recommend that you wait until you have calmed down a little before you go and start shouting," she held up a hand to ward off Sarah's protest, "I know that you will. Sit down, take a few deep breaths and go and see him later. There's no point going now, he will not see you, his aunt is visiting." Sarah's lips formed a small 'o' of surprise. Rilton's mother was here? Her anger with Jareth faded as she felt the disappointment of realising that Rilton had either not come with his mother, or he had decided that she was not worth visiting. She sat back on the bed and Vilae stood, taking her leave of the stunned young woman without being noticed. The Fae shrugged, not really worried about Sarah's lack of attention, the girl had received some shocking news, she was allowed to be distracted.

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Elissa walked through the corridor like a woman with a great purpose. Her head was held high and she moved with inhuman grace and elegance, even among the lesser Fae, goblins and Taken who populated the part of the castle she was in. She paused, gesturing to one of the young women who was walking towards her, asked for directions, smiled softly at the reply, and continued on her way. She was walking for only a few moments more before she reached Sarah's room, pausing when she saw Vilae leaving. The younger Fae woman saw her, her worried expression replaced by a frown.

"Your Highness," she dipped in a quick curtsey. "You're here to see Sarah." Elissa nodded, though she knew it was not a question. "This may not be the best time. I have just told Sarah of the King's decision. She did not take it well."

"I understand, if I had the time to return later, I would, however, I have other commitments at home which prevent it. I merely need to deliver my son's letter and I will depart. You have nothing to fear of my visit." Elissa assured the other Fae.Vilae nodded and curtseyed again before making her way back down the hall. Elissa watched her walk away, then knocked on Sarah's door.

"Come in!" Her voice was muffled by more than just the doors and walls that separated them and when Elissa entered she could see why. Sarah had buried her face in her pillows, it was almost like she was trying to hide herself from the world. She looked up as Elissa closed the door, taking in the Fae's expensive and elaborate dress, pale blonde hair and mismatched eyes. Her appearance was so like Jareth's that for a moment Sarah thought something had gone horribly wrong with the King. She mentally slapped herself, perhaps this was Jareth's sister, not that he had ever mentioned having one.

"You must be Sarah," the woman said, her voice light and tinged with an accent similar to Jareth's, but also to Rilton's. Something in her demeanor made Sarah stand and curtsey to her. Elissa grinned at her. "I am Elissa, and I come baring something of interest to you." She handed the stunned woman Rilton's letter, their fingers brushing and allowing her to feel some of the magic that Rilton and Jareth had given her.

"You're Rilton's mother?" Sarah whispered, stunned at how much of Jareth there was in the Elf Queen. "But... I mean... you're so unlike him!"

"In appearances perhaps," she was amused by Sarah's surprise. "I hope, however, that my son has more of my personality than his fathers."

"That, I can be certain of!" Sarah laughed and Elissa wondered what had happened during her visit to the summer palace that Rilton had not told her of. "I'm sorry, thank you," she waved the letter, remembering her manners. Elissa laughed, a laugh very like Rilton's and Sarah felt her worries melt away with the sound. "He isn't with you?"

"No. My son and nephew aren't really talking at the moment. I came to try and find out why. I did and now I'm taking steps to rectify the situation." Elissa explained when she saw the hurt flash across Sarah's face. "Besides, he was hardly in a fit state for travel this morning when I left. His father's arrival last night was hard on him."

"What about you?" Sarah asked in reply, gesturing for the Elf Queen to take a seat, blushing for her lack of better seating arrangements. Elissa did not seem to notice as she perched elegantly on the edge of Nadine's bed with a small smile.

"What about me?"

"The way he acts, wasn't it hard on you too?" Sarah's compassion for a woman she did not even know touched Elissa deeply. For a moment she considered pouring out all of her worries for the last five hundred and forty years, all of the things that had gone wrong in her marriage since Rilton had been conceived, but she stopped herself. She had no business burdening Sarah further with her problems.

"I admit in the past it has been hard, but what I feel or felt is no longer important. My son is the thing that I care about the most and I will not let my arrogant husband ruin what my son and I have. At this moment it is not important, my main concern is what my foolish nephew has gotten you into now." Sarah's immediate problems came crashing back down on her and she looked at Elissa with wide, slightly frightened eyes.

"How did you know?" She whispered, her face showing how completely vulnerable she was in that moment..

"I was there when she asked, neither she nor my nephew knew I was."

"And he just gave in! She asked and he gave me to her!" Sarah raged, throwing her hands in the air.

"No, Sarah, he resisted for as long as he could. Then she brought up your engagement and there you have it."

"I'm not _engaged_! How can he believe that?"

"Have you told him anything to the contrary?" Elissa kept her tone reasonable.

"He isn't talking to me," Sarah admitted, "I think that this has been going on for a lot longer than the rumour has been around." Elissa nodded, she had suspected as much.

"I should leave you to your letter. I have a nephew to berate and a son to return to. I assume you will want to reply to that." Sarah nodded. "I will come to collect your letter before I return."

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Elissa walked back into her nephew's study, she was not surprised to see him still sat in his chair by the fire, deep in thought. In fact, he was thinking so hard that he did not seem to notice her walk in. She stood and watched him for a while as he shifted in the seat, his hand moving from his knee to his chin, then to his forehead, then resting one finger alongside his nose as the rest of his hand covered his mouth. Absently he twirled his riding crop, quite where he had pulled it from always baffled Elissa. He sighed loudly, then spoke.

"How was your visit?" He asked, his voice soft.

"Shorter than I would have liked it to be," she replied, returning to her seat. He looked at her with the unspoken question in his eyes. "Vilae had just informed Sarah of your decision."

"How did she take it?" He looked away from the disappointment in his aunt's eyes.

"She was upset."

"If I could take it back I would, but it would give Marissa more reason for suspicion. I told Sarah long ago 'What's said is said' I cannot go back on that." Elissa nodded, acknowledging the truth in his words. "I cannot believe what a fool I was, to believe those rumours and let Marissa manipulate me in the way she did." His aunt laughed and he glared at her.

"Manipulation is what she does, Jareth, she's been manipulating people since the day she came here. I'll give you some advice, stop pushing Sarah away and talk to her." He rose from the chair and began to leave. "Not now, Nephew, she's angry, upset and she has some of your magic flowing through her." He stared at her open mouthed. "Did you think I wouldn't sense it? You used ancient and forbidden magic to sustain her, I know that Clara did what was best, but the consequences of such magic were always difficult to predict. The last thing that the kingdom needs right now is you being sent to the infirmary because she's lashed out at you using something that the three of you were stupid enough to give her. Give her some time to calm down and finish her letter."

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Rilton took the letter from his mother and bowed in thanks to her before almost bouncing over to the fire and sitting in a chair, he opened the letter and began to read.

_**-I have so much to tell you this time, I can't believe I finally met your mother. She's really nice, it's a shame that I couldn't have met her under different circumstances. I really do have a lot to tell you, I just don't know how, I don't want you to over react or start shouting for blood or any of the other stuff I know that you can do, believe me when I say that I'm going to deal with this in my own way and in my own time, I'm sure your mother has had her say in the matter too.**_

_**-Jareth has had me reassigned, I'm not even really sure why. Your mother tried to explain it, but I'm not really buying it. Turns out that Marissa wants me as her new maid. I have no idea why she would, I took her breakfast to her this morning and I was as rude to her as I possibly could be. She even hit me a couple of times, but according to Vilae, she asked that I become her personal maid and your dear cousin just handed me over to her. If I ever needed an example of how little he really cares about me, this is it.-**_ Rilton scowled as he continued to read, not liking what he saw in front of his eyes. _**-I hate that he's done this, Vilae told me to wait until I have calmed down to talk to him about it, fact is, I don't want to. I thought we were friends, Rilton, shows how stupid I am, I hoped that he would have the decency to tell me himself, seems he didn't and right now all I want to do is curl up into a little ball, away from him and away from her. They deserve each other.**_

_**-I miss you so much right now. If you had been here you would have gone and hit him, talked him out of it or taken me away. I won't ask you to do that though, it wouldn't be fair. I'll survive this, it's what I do. What will happen to Jareth on the other hand, is a completely different matter. Don't let this upset you too much, there's nothing that you can do, anything you do try will probably make things worse. I'm not trying to delude myself into thinking...-**_ Rilton stopped reading, unable to read Sarah's seemingly quiet acceptance of her fate.

"Why, mother? Why did he do it? You were there, you know!" His face was scarlet with rage and Elissa found herself frightened of this side of her son, the side that belonged to his father. He was half out of the chair, the letter crumpled in his fist, his normally dancing eyes flat and burning with his anger.

"He was jealous, he thought that you and Sarah were... engaged." Rilton fell back in his seat, unaware that he had even begun to stand, the letter falling from suddenly limp hands.

"She told him that?"

"No, there was a rumour around the castle, no doubt courtesy of some of her more well meaning friends." She shook her head. "He never did just ignore them."

"What am I going to do?"

"There is nothing you can do," she placed a soft kiss on his forehead. "What's done is done and what's said is said. Your Sarah is a strong girl, she'll figure something out."

"I hope so mother."

_There you go. My little update. I'm not sure about it, like I said, but I thought I would give it to you anyway. I hate to say it, but I don't know when I will be able to update again. It seems that I'm going away a lot lately, my latest trip is to a Supernatural Convention which I'm so excited about that I'm actually bouncing off the walls. Please R&R, I would love to know what you all think._

_Artemis_


	27. Chapter 27

_Ok, I am so so so sorry that I haven't updated until today! I really am! And worse, this is still a short chapter (I've realised that my chapters seem to average eight pages on wordperfect which isn't a whole lot!) I've been on cloud nine all week! Thanks to those who wished me a good time at the convention! It was amazing and it's taken me this long to write the chaper and post it because I've been in "crazy fangirl" mode. (Hey, I got my picture taken with Jensen Ackles, as did everybody else at the convention, I've been a little distracted!) Anyway, the point of this is to explain my failings to one and all, and to thank all those who reviewed! So thanks to: LilithBlack333 (I know and I have it, I'm that much of a fan!), kenseikan weirdo, Catwoman99, silver.shadow.23, draegon-fire, sweetbabby33, Dragoon-Yue, Anna McNarin, notwritten, rose217, faerieatHeart13, ScarlethasPheonixpower, aeenc, FireShifter, AvitarGirl, Sintar, FaeriesMidwife and yodeladyhoo. You're all amazing people and I'm sorry to all of those that I did not get chance to reply to! Onwards:_

Chapter Twenty-seven: Goblin Queen

Sarah walked slowly through the servants corridors, a silver tray with Marissa's breakfast on it balanced on one arm as she brushed a strand of hair from her face, tucking it awkwardly under her red bandana. She stopped by the pink door, fresh scratches in the chipped paint and wood. She sighed, no amount of abuse carved on a door would change the queen, in fact Sarah doubted that the Queen was even aware that they were there. She shifted the tray slightly before she twisted the handle with her free hand and pulling the door open, taking a step back before shuffling through and closing the door behind her.

The room was still dark, despite Sarah's desire to arrive in the Queen quarters on time, it seemed that she had arrived a little too early. She shrugged, not really worried about it, knowing that she had somewhere to go even if Marissa laid a violent hand on her. Sarah set the tray on the table and made her way to the window, opening the curtains of the sitting room before knocking on the door to Marissa's bedroom and opening it. The Fairy was in her bed, lying on her side asleep. Once again Sarah threw caution to the winds and opened the curtains of the bedroom window. Marissa grunted, then her eyes flew open and she rolled to glare at Sarah.

"Just _what_ do you think you're doing?" She demanded as Sarah picked up her robe and shook it out.

"I've brought you your breakfast, Your Highness." She kept her tone light, her expression neutral.

"Breakfast?" Marissa echoed as she clambered out fo bed, less than graceful, and slipped her arms into the robe that Sarah was holding.

"Yes, it's going cold as we speak." She let Marissa walk in front of her and into the sitting room, getting ready to leave when the Fae stopped her.

"Where do you think you're going?" Sarah looked at her blankly. "You are to run my bath and lay out my dress for the day. The pink one, with the lilac frills. Match the shoes and the jewelry." Sarah's eyes went flat with anger, but she curtseyed and went about the tasks assigned to her. First running the bath, making sure that it was steaming hot before adding the strawberry bath foam to the mix, wondering again where they got it from. Once she was happy with the temperature and the depth she left the bathroom. It was about the only vaguely normal room in the suite, the pale white tiles gleamed in the sunlight, the room airy with a glass roof and fountain in one corner. It was nice after the headache of the other rooms. It was with some reluctance that she left the room and once again entered Marissa's bedroom.

Like Marissa's dress sense, it was a riot of conflicting colours and frills, the decor made her shudder as she walked past the vanity and bed to the walk in wardrobe, opening the door and looking at the clothes inside.

"The pink one with the lilac frills," Sarah muttered, staring at the collection of gowns. That particular description matched several of the dresses and Sarah decided that the queen had just wanted to set her an impossible task. Not to be outdone she looked at three of them before deciding on something light and relatively delicate, for though it was late autumn, it was a very warm day outside. She laid the dress that she had chosen out onto the bed before she turned and went back to the closet, rummaging around the bottom until she found a pair of dainty lilac slippers that would match the dress. Those were set by the bed and she began to make her way from the room once again before she remembered that Marissa had also ordered her jewelry and she stopped and sighed before going to the small and ornately decorated boxes of jewelry on the vanity. Once again they were overflowing with ornamented and intricately made necklaces and earrings. Personally, Sarah thought that a dress such as the one she had chosen for Marissa, though not as ornate as the other two, should have some simple jewelry to offset the frills and complicated lacings of the dress. Marissa on the other hand would want something more embellished and flashy, something that would shout about her status as queen. Despite knowing this, Sarah decided to go with her first instinct, she chose a simple necklace and earrings in gold, with tiny pink opals set into the pendants and dangles. She sighed as Marissa emerged from the bathroom and ordered her to help the Fae woman dress, this was going to be a very long day.

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Sarah received the summons to Jareth's study just as she was heading to her bedroom after a long soak in the castles communal baths. It had taken a long time to get used to the idea that she would be sharing a bath with up to five other men and women at a time, but now she enjoyed the banter, it was the perfect time to catch up on the latest gossip from around the castle, which was why the rumours about her and Rilton had caught her so off guard. The last thing she wanted to do after relaxing in such a warm, welcoming environment, was to go into the King's study, a relative cool place by comparison, and start to shout at him, because she knew that was what would happen as soon as he opened his mouth. The best thing to do would be to tell him that she did not want to hear it and ask to be excused. Her mind was so occupied that she did not notice that she was at the door until she nearly walked past it.

She bounced on the balls of her feet, suddenly not so sure whether seeing Jareth was such a good idea. He had to know that she would be angry with him, Elissa had to have told him of her reaction, yet still he wanted to see her. It made her more than a little apprehensive. What if he decided that he had to send her away? What if he decided that she would be safer around Andros than she would be in the Goblin Castle, that Rilton really was the best thing for her and that what she wanted was unimportant. She tried to shrug it off, but still she hesitated before knocking on the door, lightly at first and then with greater confidence as she realised that she was more than capable of putting up a fight for her right to stay in the castle. It surprised her that she was so eager to stay and made her wonder, not for the first time, when she had begun to think of it as home.

"Come!" The sound of Jareth's voice sent an angry shiver down her spine, even though she would normally enjoy the way that he spoke. She pushed the door open with a little more force than was really necessary, hiding a wince as it banged against the wall as she marched through. From his place behind the desk, Jareth looked up, a mixture of surprise and irritation on his face.

"You wanted to see me!" She snapped, surprising herself at her confrontational attitude, as she bobbed in the merest shadow of a curtsy. The surprise on his face died and was replaced by a frown.

"Sarah..." his tone held a warning that she chose to ignore.

"You wanted to see me, I'm _here_. _Talk_, give me your pathetic excuses so that I can go to bed, I've had a _long_ day!"

"I should not have to remind you to have a little more respect for your _king_!"

She snorted, her expression derisive as she dipped into a lower curtsey with a quiet "Yes, Your Majesty," though she was still mocking him. He sighed, she was angry and hurt, he could accept that, but her attitude, no matter _whom_ she had been forced to spend her time with, was unacceptable.

"Sarah! I did not call you here for a battle of words. I wanted to..." he groped for a way to say it without losing too much face or giving away too much, "explain." He muttered finally. Her reaction was not the one he had been hoping for.

"_No_! I understand _perfectly_!" She cut him off before he could continue. "You were jealous because I get on better with Rilton and angry because we didn't ask your _permission_ to do as we may have wanted. You listened to rumour and look where you've wound up!"

"_Yes_, I listened to rumours, and _yes_, I was angry but how _dare_ you presume that I was _jealous_?" He saw red and was not really sure why. She had hit the nail right on the head with her assessment of his reasoning and therefore she _had_ to know that he felt _something_ for her, but part of him did not want her to know, and it was that part of him that had come to the surface now.

"Rilton and I are just _friends_, Jareth! If you were _so_ concerned that we were breaking some obscure _rule_ that you thought was necessary, _why_ didn't you just _ask_?" She threw her hands in the air in her frustration, her eyes glowing emerald and raw power crackling at her finger tips.

"I will remind you _never_ to call me by my given name!" He snapped back in reply, feeling his anger growing inside him, his own power beginning to coil around him.

"_Why_?" She demanded, now beginning to shout. "It was _fine_ when you thought that I was _dying_, or when you felt _guilty_ about me having to lie in the infirmary for so long!" A vase shattered but Jareth could not tell if it was him who had lost control, or her. "What changed?" He allowed himself the briefest of moments to bring some of his magic back under control before answering, Sarah only saw it as hesitation.

"_I_ did!" His voice was low, almost deadly. "I realised that I was giving you too much lee way, you _are_, after all, _only_ a _servant_!" She reeled away from him like she had been slapped and he mentally cursed his choice of words.

"I don't have to take this!" She snapped back at him. "I don't need to stand here and be insulted. You can _think_ whatever you _like_, Goblin King, I will never be '_only a servant'_!"

"Sarah!" He took a step around the desk, not sure when he had even bothered to stand, and made his menacing way towards her, his eyes darkening with anger and clouds beginning to gather outside. In the distance thunder began to roll, yet Sarah remain oblivious to it.

"_No_! You know what? I don't want to hear your pathetic excuses! I don't _care_ why you did it!" Lightning flashed, making the room brighter for just a moment, the harsh white a drastic contrast to the soft, moody light of the candles and fire place. "Maybe, just _maybe_, I _would_ be better off if I decided to marry Rilton!" She marched from the room and Jareth was too shocked to stop her. He was amazed that it had gotten this far, that he had been able to insult her enough to actually drive her towards considering marrying Rilton. To send her towards Jareth's worst nightmare, the idea that Sarah could be deliriously happy with anyone other than him.

He want back to his desk and sat on the edge, staring at the clouds overhead as the rain began to fall, large heavy drops of water that echoed as they hit buckets, helmets and old, abandoned shields. He listened to the way the patter of the falling rain changed with each different surface it struck, the high echoes of the drops striking the shields, the deeper sounds of water hitting the helmets and the dull pats as they hit the stone of paving, walls, tiles and mud. The sound soothed his aching soul and heavy head, yet his heart still hurt.

He had been a fool. He had ignored his aunts advice and allowed his temper to influence the way he had dealt with Sarah. He never seemed to be able to actually _solve_ the problem, he only seemed to either make them worse or create whole new ones. As the rain continued to fall he decided to let it lie, Sarah would eventually come to understand.

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Sarah carried Marissa's breakfast to her again the next morning, sandy eyed and feeling like her brain was dribbling out of her ears. The last thing she needed this morning was for Marissa to be in the same bad mood as she nearly always was. Sarah had had a restless night, tossing and turning and thinking about the things she had said to Jareth. She knew that she had behaved badly, but some of the things he had said had left her feeling too betrayed to make her feel sorry for the things she had said.

The Queen was sat at her breakfast table, tapping the flat surface with impatient fingers and staring into the fire, one that roared and threw out so much heat that it forced Sarah to take a step back before she could place the tray on the table. She then stepped back and clasped her hands in front of her, waiting for her instructions of the morning.

She hated this, she really hated it. Having to pretend to be this meek, obedient girl with nothing between her ears but air. Yet it would not do to irritate Marissa and Sarah knew that the quickest way to do that would be to further show the Queen how intelligent she really was. She noticed Marissa looking at her and schooled her expression into careful indifference.

"What _is_ that ugly rag you're wearing?" The Queen demanded, looking at the grey maids dress with something close to disgust on her face.

"The maids uniform, Your Highness." Sarah's reply was careful, deliberately non-challenging.

"My husband has _no_ sense of colour."

"I believe it is meant to be practical, more than anything," Sarah elaborated, then shut her mouth with an audible click as her teeth struck each other. The Queen raised an eyebrow, but did not comment.

"What are you still stood there for, anyway?" She demanded after a moment.

"I was waiting for you to tell me what you wanted to wear today." Marissa pursed her lips, thinking, a fork full of eggs pausing half way to her mouth. Her eyes lit upon Sarah's bandana, the only splash of colour against the grey and raven of her dress and hair. Today it was sky blue, with more brilliant patterns dyed through it and the fairy smirked.

"Blue," she decided, "shoes and jewels to match. Something warm, a nice cloak and shoes that I can wear whilst walking in the gardens. Lavender oil in my bath this morning." She waved a hand as she finally put the fork full of eggs into her mouth, chewing slowly as she watched Sarah leave, meek and quiet. This was almost too easy.

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The same routine became the norm for the next week until one morning, eight days later, Marissa decided to up the stakes in her little game with Sarah. The girl had yet to open up about her relationships with Jareth and his cousin, though Marissa knew that in the past Rilton had been known to chase anything in a skirt. So how had Sarah managed to get them so enamored of her? Once Sarah had disappeared about her duties in the bathroom and Marissa's substantial wardrobe, she summoned an image of her dress maker in the fire.

"Ida!" She snapped. The startled goblin turned to face the fires in her chambers and Marissa suppressed a shudder at the thought of the creature's gnarled hands touching her, sent a quick thought of thanks to all passing deities that this time she did not want the goblin's services for herself. Despite her distaste for Ida, Marissa still had to admit that in the last three centuries Ida had been the best dressmaker she had ever had.

"Your Majesty!" Ida curtseyed to her queen, her face almost human and her eyes glittering with intelligence.

"I require your services for my new lady in waiting, be here in three hours with cloths of a suitability to her station and the work she will be required to perform." Marissa waved a hand, not waiting for the goblin to reply and making her way to her bath.

Sarah looked out of the wardrobe as Marissa breezed through and she could tell that the other woman was up to no good. The Queen's head was held too high and her smile was just a little too bright. Wisely, though, she kept her mouth shut and put the shoes and dress, today purple, onto and by the bed, before pulling out the required jewelry and then going back to the sitting room and picking the tray she piled the plates onto it and left, taking the tray back to the kitchen.

She returned a short time later to find Marissa sat at her vanity, struggling with the clasp of her necklace and looking like she was ready to kill. When Sarah saw her smile, however, she knew that the Queen was definately up to no good and even if she could not think what it could be, she knew that it involved her. She suppressed a sigh and went to fasten the necklace, taking a step back and allowing the Queen a moment to preen herself as she used her magic to set her hair.

"Is that hideous thing _really_ all that you have to wear?" She asked. Sarah just nodded, not wanting to mention the light green dress that she had paid a small fortune to wear on her rare days off, something she doubted that she would have again for a while. "Well that won't do. I cannot be seen out with you in that thing."

"'Seen out', Your Highness?" She questioned, confused and not worried about showing it.

"Of course, you are my Lady-in-waiting, I need you to look your best."

"I thought I was just a maid!"

"Oh _Sarah_," Her tone was so like Karen's used to be that it almost brought tears to Sarah's eyes for her family. "You were never an ordinary maid, you should know that. After all, you _are _engaged to Prince Rilton." Sarah sighed, not wanting to correct the Queen.

"No, we aren't engaged, we're just good friends."

"That I don't believe for a second! Whatever you may say, Sarah, I _know_ that he at least asked you. I blame my husband. He thinks he isn't happy so he won't let anyone else be either." Sarah remain quiet, not interested in how the other woman got her information. Marissa was cut from almost the same cloth as Andros and Sarah wanted as little as possibel to do with her. Unfortunately, Jareth had robbed her of the ability to stay away from the woman he actively despised. She had to at least be polite to her. "He has made life so much easier for me in the last three hundred years," she mused then, but did not elaborate further, finishing with a rather simple, "and soon I have to go back to that vile place."

When the dress maker arrived nearly two hours later, Sarah was about ready to scream. At this moment the last thing that she wanted was to become Marissa's best friend and constant companion, yet this seemed to be what Marissa wanted from her new "lady-in-waiting". Sarah had tried repeatedly to convince her that she really needed some Fae of noble birth to fill the position, but Marissa had simply muttered something about her husband forcing her to give up all of the pleasures of an extended noble acquaintance and Sarah did not feel that she knew enough about the way that the Goblin Court, let alone any of the others, worked that she could not comment on whether this was true or not, though she suspected that if Marissa had wanted to leave and go elsewhere to socialise, Jareth would not have said no. She also suspected, positive that it would be true, that Jareth would have jumped at the chance to get rid of the mad woman and she wondered why Marissa seemed to be trying to play for sympathy.

When Ida walked in, Sarah was relieved to see that she was a goblin and not another Fae woman, despite the fact that Marissa seemed to hate the little creatures. Ida was taller than the average goblin and Sarah realised that she must have been one of the so called Higher Goblins when she saw the intelligent gleam in the magical creatures eyes. Ida met Sarah's gaze for just a moment before looking away, she knew the face of the girl who had destroyed the city when she saw it and she knew that Marissa knew who she was too, Sarah could not possibly know how much danger she was in.

The goblin curtseyed briefly to the Queen, then turned back to Sarah and began to pace around her, sizing her up and deciding on the colours that would best complement the girl. Long hours of work indoors had caused Sarah's skin to remain pale, even after her holiday in the Elf Kingdom and her eyes were a startling green in a pale face surrounded by a mass of long, dark brown hair, a face that seemed to have lost little of its youth to the hard life of the kitchens and laundry.

"Sarah will require four dresses, Ida. You will need to of delivered two by tomorrow and the other two by the following day. I will leave you to choose the colours, you know what I find acceptable." She held up her hand to stop Sarah from speaking as the younger woman tried to express her own opinion on the dresses she should have. "They should be simple, suitable to her station, but higher than the dress of the common maid." The goblin nodded, glancing at Sarah who was biting her lower lip in frustration as she tried to refrain from challenging Marissa, whose instructions on style and even colour, despite her earlier words, were extensive.

Eventually the Queen stopped talking and Sarah was stood on a stool, a basic white dress draped over her and the goblin deftly placing pins in the fabric where it would need to be taken in. All the while both were talking, Marissa loudly and quickly, going over instructions and deadlines for both Sarah and Ida, both of whom could only nod in acknowledgment, and Ida was mumbling about "bloody Queen, expecting damn miracles" and that despite popular belief she was "not a damned goddess and only got two hands!" Sarah stifled the urge to laugh and concentrated on a not so interesting spot on the wall, the only spot that did not make her head hurt, making sure that she only listened to Marissa with one ear.

Four hours later, Ida left and Sarah was released about her duties in the Queen's chambers, including lunch and later dinner. When she fell into bed that night, muscles that she did not know she had were aching from the need to stand bolt upright for so long and she found herself drifting into a restless sleep.

_So my little gift, a chapter for you to enjoy. Let me know what you think, I know that you were all expecting some big confrontation with Marissa, but lets be fair here, this Sarah can be a little spoiled, but she in't stupid. We've seen what Marissa has done to others and I'm certain that Sarah has no wish to wind up like Gen! There will be a fight, but not for a little while. R&R, you all know I love them and forgive my ramblings, my brain isn't quite working properly yet!_

_Artemis_


	28. Chapter 28

_So first things first, mega huge apologies for letting this slip for so long (what is it, nearly two weeks?) My head just returned from convention, squee, land and I've been writting non-stop for five hours to get this chapter done to my satisfaction. I'v also realised that there is only two chapters left until the end of this little fic (dodges flying objects). Needless to say, Rilton is a little cross at me, my little Elf Prince seems to have become the personifiaction of my muse. This explains many, many things. Next big thanks out to all who've read and bigger thanks to my reveiwers: angelbabe2000, Dragoon-Yue, silver.shadow.23, sweetbabby33, FaerieatHeart13, FireShifter, dustmitebunny, Anna McNarin, notwritten, AvitarGirl, vixen519, aeenc, ScarlethasPheonixpower, janeitesarah, InuLvr7, draegon-fire, Skyrere and yodeladyhoo. I try to reply but my social life has gone nuts, again, birthdays, dates, Pirates of the Carribean 3, that sort of thing. Anyway, ramble over, on we go._

Chapter Twenty-eight: Games.

Jareth looked at the bill which had landed on his desk early that morning with a measure of distaste and amusement. He delicately picked it up with a gloved hand and read it out loud, trying to imagine the goblin's expression as she wrote it.

_Bill for four complete dresses, cloaks and shoes:_

_Materials: _

_Cloth and threads: 30 gold pieces_

_Ribbons and lace: 5 gold pieces_

_Miracle working: 50 gold pieces._

The King was glad that Ida was so comfortable with him that she could send him such a bill. He also knew that she did not expect him to send the fifty additional gold pieces for her work when she had already incorporated the cost of labour into her materials. He was certain, however, that she knew he would give it to her anyway, a payment to ensure that nothing went remotely wrong with this new set of frocks for Marissa. Ida probably hated her more than he did, and Jareth needed to make sure that Marissa was returned to her father and family in roughly the same state that she had arrived in. That meant that he could not just allow the staff to take out their frustrations on her. Had her maids never been so universally mistreated, Jareth suspected that the castle staff would have taken their hatred of te Queen out on the girl instead.

He turned to gaze out of the window, signing the bottom of the invoice and placing it on the pile of papers to be sent down to the treasury, indicating that the bill was to be paid. He paused as he began to set it down. Thirty gold pieces for four dresses was very low all things considered, especially when just _one_ of Marissa's normal dresses would cost him three times that amount. He thought as he brought the paper nearer to him. The handwriting was Ida's and the fitting address she had put on the top was for Marissa's chambers. Had the Queen really bought Sarah four dresses? He wondered what possible reason she could have for it. She and Sarah should have been sworn enemies, they had been at each others throats, just about, since she had requested Sarah be her maid. It made no sense and Jareth began to wonder what games his wife was playing with her maid.

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Sarah approached Marissa's chambers that day with a feeling of trepidation. The last thing she had wanted when she had been given this position was a new wardrobe, Marissa seemed hell bent on giving it to her, and Sarah had to wonder why. The young woman could not help but see the two dresses hung by the window and worried a little about how it would appear for her to walk around wearing them. She could not deny that Ida had done a beautiful job with the dresses. She had chosen shades of green and blue that Sarah had never seen before, they seemed to shift in the light at once darker and lighter, deep and bright. She looked away from them and glanced at Marissa's chambers, it was time to wake the Queen and Sarah had to admit that she was a little worried about doing it. The one thing that she was certain of was that the instant Marissa woke up she would force Sarah into one of the two dresses that were hanging by the window.

Despite her misgivings, Sarah still went into the bed chamber and opened the curtains. Marissa's eyes flashed open and she glared at Sarah for a moment before she groaned and pushed herself upright. Sarah looked worried for a moment, could Fae get sick? Then Marissa smiled the same chilling smile that she always used and Sarah felt the pit in her stomach get larger. She shook off the feeling and went about their normal routine following the woman to the sitting room where Marissa began to eat her breakfast before looking at the dresses hung on the wall. She smiled again and Sarah found herself unable to look at the way it seemed to enhance the cruelty of her face. Once again she mentally cursed Jareth for putting her where she was now.

"Put one on. We will go to the market today. Make sure that you have laid out my violet gown and cape." Marissa spooned some porridge into her mouth and waved the spoon at the dresses. "The blue one, Sarah, wear the blue one." Sarah could do little more than nod and she left the room, dress in hand, to follow the orders given.

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A short time later she was stood in front of Marissa's full length mirror, staring at herself and wondering where Sarah the maid had gone. The skirt reached her ankles, flowing from her waist and the bodice was fitted but not tight, not like the corsets that Marissa seemed to prefer. It had a scoop neck, not too low for modesty, yet not high enough to suggest innocence either and the sleeves were long and fitted to her arms. The skirt did not have anywhere near the number of petticoats that Marissa's did, in face, there was only one, and Sarah relished the freedom of movement that she now had, the heavy skirts of her maids dress had restricted her in a way that she had not noticed before this moment. As much as she hated to admit it, she was grateful to Marissa for giving her the dress, and the crystal she now held. The Queen had told her that by simply touching it to her hair, the long dark locks would style themselves into something appropriate and when Sarah had tried it, they had. Her hair was now pilled loosely on the top of her head, small curls and wave falling to her shoulders. If Sarah had not been able to feel the callouses on her hands, she would have thought that she had been born into this life, just from her reflection.

Marissa emerged from her bed chambers and looked Sarah up and down, examining her as the girl stood mesmerized as she stared at her reflection. Seeing the way that Sarah had suddenly become so much more beautiful, Marissa began to wonder if giving Sarah the dresses had been a good idea. She would definitely draw more attention to herself now, and not necessarily the good kind, except that some would show more interest in her now than they ever had before. She shrugged it off, the end result would be the same either way, it did not matter.

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Marissa watched as Sarah began to pack away her purchases, jewelry, mirrors and other trinkets that Marissa neither needed nor wanted. The shopping was simply a way to get out of the castle and irritate Jareth. Now she could add exposing the new and improved Sarah to the Goblin City. Stares and whispers had followed them and Marissa was pleased to see that her plan seemed to be working, after all, why do yourself what others will be more than willing to do for you?

Sarah knew that Marissa was watching her as she put away the trinkets and junk that the Queen had bought that day. She did not want to know why, having a feeling that Marissa had already done enough damage to her anonymity with the dress and the shopping trip than taking her on as a maid ever could have.

"Fetch me some tea, Sarah," the older woman commanded and Sarah was only too happy to oblige and get out from under her stare for just enough time to relax and unwind. It was not until she had nearly reached the kitchens that she remembered the new dress that she was wearing and how it would look. She shrugged, it was too late now and Marissa had already implied that she wanted Sarah to wear one of the dresses every day.

"Sarah! You look amazing!" Nadine was in the kitchen as she entered and Sarah cursed her luck, the other maid would make it nearly impossible to get away.

"Thank you, but I still don't want to have to wear it," she replied as she swung the kettle, that was permanently suspended over the fire, out of the hot fireplace and poured the boiling water into a pot.

"You mean Rilton didn't give it to you?" Nadine asked, her eyes wide and innocent.

"This was Marissa's idea," Sarah muttered, but Nadine's words had given her an idea and she wondered what Rilton had done with all of the dresses that she had left behind when she had left the Elf Kingdom. "I'll chat later, I can't really stop now, Marissa will lose it if I'm not back with the tea quickly." She avoided that conversation that she really did not want to have. Nadine nodded and watched, worried, as Sarah rushed from the room, skirts rustling and posture tense.

Sarah fretted all the way back to Marissa's chambers, Nadine was a gossip, it was something that came to her as natural as breathing and by dinner it would be all around the castle that Marissa was dressing her up and parading her around, her tame mortal, the champion of the Labyrinth nothing more than Marissa's lap dog.

She was still thinking when she poured Marissa's tea and handed her the cup, so deep in thought that Marissa had to speak twice before she noticed.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness?" She queried and was rewarded with a flat glare of utter contempt.

"I asked if you wanted to join me!" Marissa snapped in reply and Sarah suppressed the urge to smack her. Sarah curtseyed and poured herself a cup, sitting delicately on the other chair, as though half expecting the Queen to fly into a fit of rage and berate her for taking her up on the evidently insincere offer. Marissa did not start to shout, in fact she sat there, staring into her cup for a moment before speaking. "Do you know what they say about me out there?" For a long moment Sarah debated the proper reply, saved at the last moment as Marissa began to talk again. "They say that I'm insane, that the best thing that my husband will ever do for his kingdom is divorce me." Sarah nodded sympathetically and let Marissa continue. "Marrying me was the best thing he ever did for me." Sarah nearly choked on her tea and covered it with a protracted coughing fit. "My father was not a kind Fairy, he took great pleasure in the use of a cane and a belt, and not just for punishing the servants." Sarah could see where this was going and wondered again why the Queen was playing for sympathy, why she wanted Sarah to care what had happened to her. "The day he divorces me, I get sent back to that place. To my father I will be of little more worth than a mortal slave. Sometimes I think that Jareth has not touched me since we were married because he fears hurting me. I need your help. I need to know how you ensnared Prince Rilton so, that I may do the same for my husband."

Sarah knew that she was staring, knew that her jaw was on the floor and her eyes were dancing on stalks. If she had thought for half a moment that Marissa's father really treated her that way she would have been all sympathy and tried her hardest to help the Queen. As it stood, Sarah did not believe her, something about the way Marissa had told her story was off and, to top it off, Sarah had surprised herself by finding that she had felt angry at Marissa for even daring to try and get Jareth to love her. Jealousy was not an emotion that Sarah liked, and she found it all the more strange and upsetting that this emotion was evoked by Jareth and Marissa of all people.

"I can't help you, I'm sorry, I don't know what I did to make Rilton love me." She whispered.

"You mean to try and tell me it was an accident?"

"Yes, I had no idea that he could feel that way for me." She kept her voice soft as she began to gather up the tea things, very uncomfortable with discussing her private life with the Queen. "Will there be anything else, Your Highness?" She asked, trying to change the subject.

"I will need a gown for this evening, this dress simply will not do, and run me a bath." Marissa ordered, angry that Sarah was holding out on her. Sarah nodded and went to run the bath before going to the wardrobe to look at the collection of gowns and dresses. She could easily say that she was not jealous of Marissa's wardrobe, too many frills, but she sometimes thought that it would be nice to have a larger selection of clothes of her own choosing, not the dresses she had been forced to wear, first by Jareth and now by his mad wife. She shook herself out of her melancholy, picked out a florescent pink gown for Marissa and left quietly.

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Three days later, Rilton turned up in the castle again. He looked tired and travel worn, his normally immaculate blue/black hair hung limp and he seemed to have lost weight. Sarah was in the kitchen when he arrived and she was shocked at how bad he looked. Yet even though he was not at his best, Sarah could still appreciate his good looks, which worried her.

"Rilton!" She put down the tray that she was holding and went to his side, noting the slightly stale, musty smell of him and feeling her worries surge she lead him to a chair, before going to the fire and pouring him a large mug of steaming coffee, thick and black, just the way he liked it. He sent her a grateful smile and took a large sip, sighing as he relaxed back into the chair.

"Thank you, Sarah, you have no idea how much I needed that." He muttered, his voice hoarse. She smiled at him, but had also wrinkled her nose.

"You need a bath too," she murmured back as she picked up the tray again.

"Where are you going?" He asked, standing as if to follow her, then swaying a little on his feet.

"To take the Queen her breakfast, Rilton, that's my job now, remember? I'll be back at lunch. Why don't you go and have a long soak in the bath and clean yourself up, you look like a pirate." She paused. "Did you bring it?"

"I had it sent straight to your room." He smiled at her and she was pleased to see that he still had all of his teeth, especially since she suspected that he had been in a number of bars since she had last seen him.

"Thank you." She sent him a quick grin but pushed down the urge to peck him on the cheek, not wanting to contend with the smell of stale alcohol for the contents of her stomach.

He watched her walk away and wondered at his cousin's idiocy. Rilton knew from experience that Sarah was not a quitter, she would not leave a situation simply because it inconvenienced her, and Marissa was the biggest inconvenience of all. Sarah had stuck out her time in the laundry, carving out the best possible existence for herself in a situation so far removed from the life she had always known. Now she was attempting to cope with her position as Marissa's Lady-in-waiting, not an easy job by anyone's standards, and from what Rilton had seen that morning she was doing a good job. Her dresses had improved in colour and quality, certainly they looked better on her than the grey ever had. But they also looked a little too expensive for a simple maid, and that brought Rilton right back to his worries five months before, when Jareth had announced to the whole kingdom that Sarah had returned and that he was punishing her. This did not look like punishment, even though deep down he knew that it was.

Rilton sighed and drained the last of his coffee. A bath and then he would see his cousin before a last meeting with Sarah. He had been away from home for too long.

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The knock on his study door shattered Jareth's concentration and he looked at the door with a measure of annoyance, as if he could blame the inanimate piece of wood for the arrival of his unexpected guest. As doors will usually do, however, it did not give a hint of remorse and, as could be judged from another bang on the woodwork, the door did not seem inclined to dispose of the visitor either, it appeared that he would have to do that for himself.

"Come!" He called softly and watched as the door opened and his cousin shuffled through. He looked tired, he also looked like he had just come from a bath and Jareth let himself wonder about that for a second before his eyes became flinty again.

"Cousin," Rilton greeted him warmly, though there was an odd note to his tone. "We need to talk."

"Can this not wait?" Jareth asked in reply, gesturing to his desk, no longer able to see the wood under the paper. "As you can see, I have a small forest on my desk, all of it tedious."

"Then you should be glad of a break." Rilton sat on the chair opposite him and began to watch in silence, brown eyes following every move of the owl feather quill before Jareth finally set it down, irritation flickering across his face.

"If this is about Sarah..." He warned.

"The universe doesn't revolve around people shouting at you about Sarah, cousin," Rilton muttered in reply. "Though now that you mention it. Did no one tell her that Marissa hates peach?"

"Not that I'm aware," Jareth had turned his eyes back to the sheet of parchment in front of him. "But I doubt she would tell me anyway."

"Mother suspected that you two wouldn't be talking, which shows that she's been reading my mail again." Rilton tried to make light of the situation.

"You should hide it better." Jareth's voice was stony, he did not need a reminder that Sarah was writing to Rilton on a weekly basis.

"I've never had to before, she's never taken such an interest in my private life before. The point that I actually wanted to make was that I think Sarah is going to do something stupid to provoke Marissa. Involving a peach dress." Jareth snorted.

"Maybe she just liked it, Rilton, she can be fickle like that. But you didn't come to discuss Sarah's wardrobe." At least, Jareth _hoped_ he had not. The last thing he wanted was to hear Rilton detailing every item of clothing that Sarah owned. The very idea made him seethe with jealousy, not to mention that he found it more than a little disturbing that Rilton might want to talk about Sarah's wardrobe. To his relief, his cousin chuckled and moved forward in his seat, suddenly tense as the chuckle died on his lips.

"I wanted to talk about us, Jareth." The Goblin King groaned, Rilton made it sound like they were in a relationship.

"What about us?" He asked, his own manner hostile and he knew why Rilton had tensed up.

"I thought we could talk to each other about things, we always used to. What changed." The elf was met with a black scowl and he knew that he had gotten his answer. "Sarah." He guessed and Jareth's scowl became potentially lethal. "Why didn't you ask me when you heard about the engagement. Even if you couldn't ask her, you could always have asked me. I don't understand what's going on in your head."

"Don't you dare try and judge me, Rilton. You knew my feelings for the girl when you decided to pursue her." He snapped back and Rilton bowed his head briefly. "You betrayed me when you offered her the opportunity to leave with you. What makes you think that I would trust you to be truthful with me now?"

"I deserved that, but Sarah does not deserve this treatment, she doesn't deserve to be Marissa's whipping post, that _is_ what she will become. You should trust to the bonds of blood and friendship, Cousin. I never set out to woo or claim Sarah for my own. She has her own bewitching magic and I cannot deny that she fascinates me. Nor will you be able to stop my from offering her a chance to return to my home with me. I don't want her to feel she has no one to turn to." Rilton stood and bowed, leaving before Jareth had a chance to stop him.

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Rilton sat in the kitchens and waited for Sarah to come and fetch her mistress' lunch. She had been right, he felt a lot better after his bath, even if his talk with Jareth had left him feeling like he had done more harm than good to his relationship with his cousin.

Sarah's posture as she entered the kitchen seemed to be one of defeat and Rilton felt a measure of worry well up inside him until he saw her smile at him, the same happy smile that always lit up the room when she entered. Sarah set the tray on the table next to him and pecked his cheek in greeting, both of them had long since dispensed with formalities. She sat across from him and the defeat returned.

"What's wrong, Sarah?" His voice was soft, even though his concern could have made it harsh. "Did Marissa do anything to you?" He snapped, his worry putting that hard edge there that made him sound so much like Jareth that her head snapped up and she looked at him with something like fearful affection before she returned to the kitchen and remembered who she was speaking to, even as her lips had begun to form the King's name. It was then that Rilton realised that he had lost her to Jareth, he had probably never had her.

"She's drowning me in kindness. She hasn't said a harsh word or hit me since I started. It's a little worrying. Now she gives me these dresses and parades me around the castle, the grounds and the city. Next week she wants us to go riding and is having clothes made for that too. She's up to something, but I don't know what."

"Just, be careful, Sarah. She could change at any moment. Don't do anything to upset her." Rilton advised, taking her hands in his and feeling insubstantial eyes watching them. He frowned and looked at Sarah to see if she had noticed. She gave no sign of it, even though he could feel the magic in her fingers, magic that had been used, if unknowingly, fairly recently.

"I will be, Rilton, believe me, I have no reason to want Marissa to start using me the way she has others. Besides, I doubt Jareth cares anymore anyway." The heartbreak in her voice tore at Rilton, confirming his suspicions of earlier and he let himself sigh.

"If you need somewhere to go, you are always welcome to come to me." It had to be said, even if he knew that she would probably never take him up on the offer.

"I know. Thank you." Her smile was small, but it was there all the same and it was for him. That was all he needed. "Rilton, can I ask you something?" He nodded, not trusting himself to speak, not wanting it to be a question about his cousin. "How common is it for Fae parents to abuse their children?" The question had a speculative tone to it, carefully engineered that way to try and soften any suspicions that he may develop. Unfortunately, her intense expression gave her away. He looked at her, his eyes both shocked and horrified.

"It would _never_ happen. Our children are far to valuable to us for that to be even contemplated. No matter what the Queen may have told you, she would never have been mistreated." Sarah nodded, her suspicions confirmed.

"Thank you, my dear friend." The cook cleared his throat and she looked at the tray of food that was gradually going cold. "Will you be here later?" He shook his head. "Goodbye then." She pecked his cheek again. "I'll write to you soon."

With that she was gone, the tray in hand as she made her way back to Marissa and her manipulations. Still wondering why the woman was trying to get Sarah to feel sorry for her, still unsure why she was being so kind, and feeling unseen, angry eyes watching her wherever she went.

_So,there you go, an update. I have a couple of days off work now, so hopefully, between job hunting and social events, I'll be able to get the next chapter up and done by the end of the week. Again, I know you all want confrontation and misery. It's coming in the next chapter, this I can promise you. Jareth will get his wake up call but it won't be who you expect it to be. Please R&R!_

_Artemis_


	29. Chapter 29

_Ok, so I've read this and re-read this about ten times, no matter what you all say, I'm happy with it. Actually, this was the easiest chapter to write, mostly because I had it all mapped out when I started this fic. All the other chapters were rough ideas and bullet points that I sort of tagged together, this was actually roughly written and needed fleshing out a little, My sister read it, she thinks it works, then again, my sister has been known to have very poor taste. Thanks out to my reviewers: Mint Tea Rose, Dragoon-Yue, FaerieatHeart13, draegon-fire, notwritten, Anna McNarin, Avispa, InuLvr7, aeenc, Me, angelbabe2000, Skyrere, sweetbabby33, FireShifter, yodeladyhoo and ScarlethasPheonixpower. All of you are amazing, as usual!_

Chapter Twenty-nine: Truth

Jareth stood at his window and looked down rather than out at the city. Beneath him he could hear the sound of laughter, Sarah's laughter, and it brought to mind a time when her laugh had been for him and not for the insane woman she was sat talking to. He sighed, wanting to know what she was laughing at and dreading ever finding out. Assigning Sarah to Marissa should have been a punishment for the girl, a punishment for something that was not even her fault.

A knock on the study door brought him back to reality and he sat at his desk before calling for the visitor to enter. Torel walked into the room, he was obviously nervous and the emotion was very out of character for the normally self assured steward.

"Your Majesty." He bowed.

"Yes, Torel," Jareth looked up from the paper that still covered his desk, his eyes were oddly gentle.

"It's about Sarah." The flintiness returned to Jareth's eyes and Torel almost regretted bring up the girl.

"Has Marissa mistreated her in any way?" He demanded, his voice hard and cold, even though he knew the answer.

"No, Majesty, not at all. Quite the opposite and it has me concerned. She has taken Sarah into her confidence, treats her as a Lady-in-waiting rather than her maid. As you know she has given her several fine dresses to wear, they walk in the gardens together and Marissa takes her riding. I believe that she is manipulating her. I think she's using Sarah to help her get you to ... ... ..." he shrugged and spread his hands, "you know."

"I am aware, Torel, but I doubt that even Sarah dislikes me enough to wish to aid Marissa, knowingly or not."

"I fear, that Marissa's treatment of her is going to put her in even greater danger than she was before." Torel insisted.

"Perhaps you are correct," Jareth decided after a moments thought. "Send Sarah to me." He ordered. Torel nodded and left as Jareth leant back in his seat. He had only three weeks until he was free of his wife, released from a loveless marriage entered into by a child. Marissa must have been getting desperate to turn to this kind of tactic, to plot with the woman who had defeated him as a mere child. A woman that Marissa had to know had power over him, she was cruel, not stupid.

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Sarah was just mounting her horse for her weekly ride with Marissa when Torel emerged from the stables, his face slightly flushed. Sarah looked down as he shouted her name. The Fae steward stopped by her horse and looked up at her.

"The King wishes to see you." Marissa made a sound of discontent.

"She will attend to him as soon as we are done here." She told the steward her tone lofty and distaste on her face. It was clear that she held nothing but contempt for Jareth's most loyal servant.

"With respect, Your Highness, he wishes to see her now."

"You will tell him that he will see her later. Come, Sarah!" Marissa spurred her horse forward and Sarah smiled apologetically at Torel before following. Torel muttered something rude and retreated back to the castle.

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Sarah debated the possibility of causing Marissa some severe physical harm as she raced through the castle. Not only had the Queen dragged her off on her ride after Torel had summoned her, she had then insisted that Sarah change and style her hair before presenting herself to Jareth. If Jareth had not been angry with her when he had sent out the summons, he was going to be furious now.

She sighed and knocked on the study door, there was nothing else for it, she would have to take things as they came.

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Jareth heard the knock on the door and breathed a sigh of relief. It was unlike Sarah not to answer a summons the instant she received it. It was also unlike her to make him wait when he knew that she was in the castle and he wondered what his Queen had been up to make Sarah late.

"Come, Sarah!" He called, knowing that it would again throw her off guard and enjoying the power it gave him. The door drifted open and he saw Sarah stood there, a perplexed frown on her pretty face.

"My apologies for my tardiness, Your Majesty," she curtseyed. "You wished to see me." Her tone was no longer mocking, her eyes were modestly downcast and he wondered if five weeks with Marissa was really all it had taken to dampen her fire. He allowed himself to look her over before he replied, she now wore a green gown, one where the colours seemed to shift from light to dark as she fidgeted. Her long dark hair had been scooped away from her face and elegantly styled, everything about her appearance screamed Marissa.

"I need to talk with you about your mistress." He saw her nervously smooth the front of her dress. "I presume she gave you that? And she magically styled your hair?" Sarah nodded. "What does she say of me?"

"She, uh, she tells me in the strictest confidence, Sire," Sarah tried to side step the question, after all, how could you tell a man that you try to hate, yet seem to love at the same time, that his wife alternates between calling him an ignorant, pig headed, impotent fool, to saying that she loved him, and then going back to the name calling. Sarah had seen it all and she was not eager to repeat any of it. She did not want him to become angry at her for daring to repeat some of the more insulting words, nor did she want him to suddenly realise that he loved Marissa because she was silly enough to repeat that conversation.

"Sarah," he warned her, his voice low, yet even that sounded too much like a caress and he mentally cursed his weakness. She blushed and looked up at him, the old fire returning to her eyes and it delighted him to see that it had not been killed entirely.

"Why do you need _me_ to tell you? She's _your_ wife. Surely you talk!"

"Too often for my tastes," he grumbled, ignoring Sarah's outburst. "What is she planning, Sarah? What sordid little scheme is she using now?" He gestured for her to sit, not surprised when she chose to remain standing, seeing the anger that flared in her eyes with his words and not really blaming her. He knew that they should have talked the day he realised that Marissa was buying Sarah dresses. "You _will_ tell me what I want to know!"

"What? You want me to spy on the woman you love?" She demanded.

"I do _not_ love her, Sarah, I never did, as you are well aware. And, yes, I want you to spy on her." He kept his voice level, wanting to shout from the rooftops that he hated Marissa with all of his heart.

"Why would I?" Sarah was not showing the same restraint he was and was allowing her emotions to show. "You _married_ her, Jareth, you _must_ have loved her when you did!" There it was, the root of the whole problem that had existed between them from, well, from day one really, when he thought about it. When he had first met Sarah, several days before she had called on him, he had known that he could not be with her, it had clouded his judgement, made him do and say things he should not have. Now, it seemed, things were coming back to haunt him. He rubbed his temples, the first sign of stress he had allowed to show, and when he spoke his voice was tense.

"It was an _arranged_ marriage, Sarah, love was not required, only obedience. I will say it again, I do _not_ love her." This was not the conversation they were supposed to be having. She was supposed to just tell him everything. Was she still so angry at him that she was willing to defend Marissa?

"So all this time you've lied to her? Lead her to believe you had feelings for her? You expect me to believe that?" Jareth idly noted that her face was turning a more interesting shade of red, even as his mind latched onto the fact that Sarah had told him Marissa believed him in love with her. "After all of the lies you told me? All of the things you offered me, were they lies too? Another _trap_ hidden in your words."

"Sarah..." he hesitated, then stood and marched to the window, avoiding her accusing eyes, trying to control his temper. "In the Goddess' name, Sarah, do you really want me to be stuck with that banshee for all eternity?" He demanded, finally, losing the battle to stay in control and letting his anger take over, perhaps more angry that, instead of discussing Marissa's potential threat levels, they were discussing his feelings for her.

"I think you deserve each other!"

"I don't _love_ her, Sarah!" He snapped again, deciding to give a little, let her have a hint of his feelings. "There is only _one_ person I have ever _truly_ loved and she is _not_ Marissa!" His confession did not have the desired reaction.

"Oh, and I suppose you _lied_ to her too! How can you marry a woman if you don't love her? Arranged or not, how can you do it? Was this other woman at your wedding?"

"No," he felt himself deflate a little at her reaction, "I met her only _after_ I married Marissa."

"So that makes it ok?" She questioned in reply and belatedly he remembered the reason she had been on the plane in the first place. "Men are all the same!" She snapped and marched from the room, unable to bare the jealous rage that his talking of loving another woman had evoked in her.

"Well _that_ went well," Jareth muttered and sat back at his desk. After the conversation he had just had with Sarah, he now doubted that the woman he loved would ever be able to share his feelings.

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Sarah did not return to Marissa's chambers after she had marched from Jareth's study, her anger at him was still too near the surface, if she went to Marissa now, the Queen would only use it to her own advantage and needs. She could not believe how jealous she had felt when he had begun to talk of loving another woman. How could he love someone else? The idea made her feel sick and she wondered if she should have talked to him sooner.

It took her some time of pacing in her room for her to realise that she had shouted at the Goblin King, _her_ king, a few more for her to begin to regret it profusely and a moment longer for her to decide that it was not really his fault that she had behaved so badly.

"Damn!" She snapped at her reflection in the mirror on the wall. He was right, of course, the marriage had been arranged and there was no reason to assume that he had ever loved Marissa in light of that. He could not help it if the woman was manipulative and she had fallen right into her trap, alienating herself from Jareth with a few ill thought out words simply because she had been angry with him. She had allowed Marissa to fuel her anger and had taken it out on the man who deserved it least in her eyes.

Sarah looked down at the dress she wore, the fine silk felt good against her skin, so much nicer than the rough, heavy material the maids dress was made out of. After so many months of the coarser dress, these new ones had seemed like a god send. Now it simply felt of Marissa's manipulation and magic and it made her feel dirty and used as she felt it seem to crawl over her skin. In a flurry of movement she had grabbed a towel and a robe, one of the only things she had brought back with her from her time with Rilton, and headed to the bath house.

The large bath was empty when she got there, it was late, too late to go and see Jareth to apologise, but she could spend this time removing the sense of Marissa's magic from her. Sarah dropped the towel and robe onto a bench by the bath and all but ripped off the dress and under garments, pulling her hair from its magical confines and running steaming hot water into the tub before pouring liberal amounts of peach bath scent into the water. The smell was almost intoxicating as it brought to mind the evening that she had begun to hate peach. Now as she lowered herself into the almost scalding water, she wondered how she had gone so long without it.

She lay in the water, simply happy to let the peach and the water wash the feel of Marissa from her body. As she relaxed, she let herself begin to think again. Jareth had wanted to know what Marissa had been angling for, she had denied him because she really had not been sure. At first she had though that the Queen had merely wanted Sarah's help in persuading Jareth not to divorce her. Now Sarah realised that it ran to more than that. Marissa wanted Sarah's help in getting Jareth into her bed!

She needed to see him, but even as she jumped out of the bath and ran the towel roughly over her body before pulling on the soft, satin robe, she realised that it was too late now. He would already have retired to bed. She just hoped that it was his own, that, despite the mad desires of her heart, the woman he spoke of loving was not her. She prayed that tomorrow morning would not be too late.

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Jareth sat and stared into the fire, dinner had come and gone, he had dismissed Torel with a wave of his hand and now he was sat alone in his study, alone with his thoughts and the fire. For some insane reason, Sarah always seemed to bring out the worst in him, they seemed to fight at every turn, never agreeing on anything. He was so afraid of losing her, that he had become cruel and bad tempered, he had done things to her that he never should have, giving Sarah to Marissa would probably turn out to be the one thing that finally drove the wedge between them.

The only time he had ever thought she may return any feeling he had for her was in the infirmary, as they had read together, the sound of her laughter or the way she would touch his arm as he read, her silent encouragement to continue and the happy way her eyes lit up when he walked into the room. That time had been their best time, no real fighting, no tears, no fear of losing the thing that was never his in the first place.

That was what it all came down to. The fact that, as much as he tried to tell himself otherwise, Sarah had never really been his. Perhaps there had once been a time when she could have been, but that time was gone. Just the way she had looked at him earlier told him that. The anger and disgust in her eyes as he talked of loving another, even though he had called her to him to discuss his wife. It had been a mistake and he knew it, Sarah held nothing but contempt for those who would love another while married. He understood why and wondered if he should have just told her that the feelings he had locked away in his heart were for her. Even as he thought of it, he thought he had also seen something else in her eyes, he thought that he had seen a flash of jealousy there, if just for a moment before the anger had covered it. He dismissed it, Sarah had never shared his feelings for her, he was almost certain, her heart lay elsewhere even though she had stayed through all of the mistreatment. He knew what he had to do.

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The next morning Sarah took more care over her appearance than she ever had before. The crystal Marissa had given her to use lay in the corner where Sarah had thrown it the night before. Now she sat with the brush in her hand as she gently pulled it through the waves she had plaited into her wet hair before she had gone to bed. Once she had teased and softened them enough, she pulled some of it back, securing half of it up with a silver clip. She rose and looked at the dress she had laid out on the bed and wondered if this was really the right thing to do. Then she shrugged and pulled on the peach gown she had asked Rilton to bring for her. It was a well known fact that the Queen hated peach of any sort, and that it had started just after Sarah had run the Labyrinth. Still, it had been her favourite, and Sarah decided to ignore the dangerous mood it would no doubt cause, she had something she needed to do first.

Before she left the room she slipped the wolf's head pendant around her neck, finishing the outfit and hoping that it made the intended impression. Then she cast a glance at the mirror again, noted the dark circles of her restless night, and left, her heals clicking on the stone floor as she walked, a woman with a purpose.

She knocked on the study door when she reached it, knowing that she was late with Marissa's breakfast, not caring, smoothed the peach gown, and stepped in without waiting to be invited. Jareth looked up at her from his chair by the fire and she could see the terrible weariness on his face. He still wore the same clothes that he had been wearing the night before and a shock ran through her as she realised that he had been sat there all night.

"Sarah," he breathed her name with all of his desire and longing for escape, checking himself as he saw the dress, the way it clung to her curves and flowed from her waist, the dress that Rilton had brought here for her. He let his mask descend, but not before she had seen the hurt in his eyes.

"I came to apologise," she closed the door behind her and came closer to the chair, trying to see some sign of a reaction.

"For what?" She heard the tiredness in his voice and it scared her.

"For yelling at you," he looked away from her searching eyes.

"All you said I deserved. You may as well go and prepare your mistress' chambers." He instructed then, his hopeless defeat catching his voice in his throat, making him sound broken.

"Why?" She hoped he was not telling her what she thought he was, feeling something in her chest catch.

"I have decided to do as my queen wishes. Now go." He stood slowly, painfully, staring into the fire unable to look at her.

"Why? Why do it? What about the woman you love? It's only three weeks until you can be with her!" His answering laugh was short, harsh and dead.

"I do not believe she will _ever_ return my feelings. I suspect she has feelings for another. Marissa is queen, it is time I began to treat her as such." He gestured for her to leave, and as much as it hurt Sarah to let herself do it, she curtseyed and turned, before another question stopped her.

"Who is she?" She tried to keep the nearly crippling hope from making her legs give way beneath her.

"Who?"

"The woman you love." He looked back at her and something hardened behind his mismatched eyes.

"In light of my decision, I really fail to see how that matters any more." He snapped, Sarah refused to take the hint.

"Have you told her?" She moved closer to him, but kept the chair between them for the moment, not wanting to be too close.

"Why would I do that?" He mocked.

"Then how do you know she doesn't love you?" She moved around the chair, daring to stare up into his hard eyes, still allowing herself the foolish hope that he was talking about her and wondering why it had become so important to her that he did. Cursing her hope and aware of how unlikely it was that he would ever think of her that way as she looked at him, willing him to see in her eyes what she had never dared to show.

"Because..." he looked at her helplessly, crossing the remaining distance between them in a few short steps. "Because she has the offer of another, each time I see her, she is closer to accepting that offer." The hopelessness in his held her and she touched his cheek, feeling the electricity between them and knowing that she was now on dangerous ground. Jareth would do anything he could to avoid this meeting with Marissa, she did not care. After a second he turned away.

"Leave."

"Jareth..."

"_Leave_, Sarah!" She turned, hurt to be so dismissed, and moved towards the door when a gloved hand grasped her arm and spun her around, his lips on hers in a instant. His kiss was sweet, tasting of exotic spices and magic, potent and over whelming. To him, her lips were soft, she smelt of peaches and tasted of almonds and he crushed her to him, surprised when responded to his kiss with an unprecedented amount of enthusiasm.

"Wow," Sarah breathed, touching her lips as they came apart. "_That_ is something she definitely does not deserve." He stared down at her, his eyes soft and vulnerable. "I would never have left, Jareth, no matter how many times it was offered. I stayed for you." She was not sure why it was so important to tell him that now, but as soon as she had said it, she knew it had been the right thing to do. All of the tension seemed to go out of him as he laughed, relieved and happy, her serious voice cut him off. "Don't give in to her, Jareth, please." She hated the desperation that sounded in her voice, but he simply grinned and kissed her again.

"I have no intention of it." He dropped a crystal between them and Sarah watched in fascination as the dress changed from peach to cream and gold, her hair rearranged itself so that it looked as though she had just done it and she now smelt of cherries. "It would not do to have Marissa fly into a rage at you, my Dearest Sarah." He kissed the back of her hand, that lightest of touches that seemed to burn into her soul. "Thank you," he whispered and vanished, leaving her standing alone in his study.

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To say that Marissa was angry when Sarah finally made her appearance would have been an understatement. Yet Sarah found it hard to feel any remorse for her actions as she listened to the other woman's angry tirade. Going to see Jareth had been the best thing she had done since she had arrived and she could not regret it.

Outside the Queen's chambers, the angry eyes that followed Sarah wherever she went retreated. They could hear the infuriated voice of the Queen and they decided that, no matter what appearances might be, Sarah was being punished suitably for actions in the past and there was no need for them to intervene.

Back inside and Marissa could see that Sarah was not really listening to her. Her eyes had taken on a dreamy expression, they were somewhere else and she fell silent, waiting to see if the foolish girl would notice. She did not, in fact, she simply ran her hands over the skirts of her dress and Marissa noticed for the first time that it was not one of the ones she had bestowed upon the girl.

"Where did you get that dress?" She demanded and Sarah was startled out of her dream world. She hesitated for a moment before finding her voice enough to reply.

"Prince, Rilton gave it to me, Your Highness, it was the reason for his visit a few weeks ago. Marissa scowled, not believing Sarah for a moment. The scent of Jareth's magic was all over her, and not the magic that flowed through Sarah's veins, this magic was fresh and it clung to the dress and her hair. The Queen's eyes narrowed but she did not voice her suspicions. She could wait.

Marissa's suspicions were confirmed later when Torel came and whispered a message in Sarah's ear. The girl had smiled in delight and had once again become a dreamer. Useless to the Queen.

The Fae woman waited, watching, she followed Sarah when the girl left her chambers that evening, watched as she went to her shared room and waited as the castle gradually fell asleep. For a short time, Marissa thought that she may have been wrong, maybe Torel's message had been nothing. Then she saw the door open, and Sarah came out of her room, her dark cloak pulled tightly around her shoulders as she moved quietly through the castle towards Jareth's study.

When the girl stepped quickly inside the room, Marissa saw red, Jareth was not in there, she knew that Sarah had arrived first of the pair and she followed her in. Sarah was stood by the fire, gazing into it as it slowly burnt, it could only have been built up for this meeting and Marissa reached for the large book that her husband had left on the table near the door. Grasping it and trying not to gasp at the weight she walked up behind her treacherous Lady-in-waiting and raised the book above her head, bringing it down with as much force she could as Sarah turned, sensing the other person in the room for the first time.

There was a dull thud and Marissa watched in satisfaction as Sarah's legs gave out from underneath her. She did not pass out, she lay on the carpet by the burning fire, dazed and confused, the King's name a whisper on her lips as Marissa kicked her a few time in the ribs. Then her eyes lit upon the fire and she grabbed the girl by the hair, pulling her face up and moving her towards the flames. She grunted as she shifted the weakly struggling girl, then pushed her face into the fire, feeling the flames lick her hands, feeling the pain and hearing the girls cries as the door opened behind her.

_And this is where I leave it. I have to admit that there was a few places that I could have stopped earlier in the chapter, but this felt right and I leave it on my final cliff hanger! (Mine is an evil laugh!) I'm happy with this, it was an impulse reaction of Jareth's that got the lovely pair on track, I think it works (of course if you don't, you can tell me, I always like to hear what you think) this just flowed the best from my little finger, now worn nearly to the bone. I'l try to get the final chapter up within the next week, but my boiler just broke and I'm a little stuffed without it. No hot water means cold showers, which are evil! Until then._

_Artemis_


	30. Chapter 30

_The final chapter and I have to say that I'm sorry to end this fic, the number of reviews I have received has been amazing and humbling, and I want to thank everyone who read and reviewed over the course of this little work. Thanks out to those who reviewed the last chapter: draegon-fire, InuLvr7, EDouble, vickster223, Anna McNarin, notwritten, Me, VampiricSlayer, Sintar, yodeladyhoo (thanks for being a sounding board when I needed it, and taking a certain someone off my hands when he got too much), ScarlethasPheonixpower, aeenc, Avispa, angeloneous, silver.shadow.23 (your reviews continue to make me laugh hysterically each time I read them), sweetbabby33, Weirdness Rocks and FaerieatHeart13 (a lot of my improvements seem to be down to you, I thank you again.)_

_Thanks out to you all. I won't leave you waiting any longer._

Chapter Thirty: Ending.

As he approached his study door, Jareth heard a muffled thump. Fearing the worst he pushed the door opened. What he saw horrified him. Marissa had Sarah by the hair, forcing the face of the woman he loved into the burning fire. The Queen's face was twisted into an expression of maniacal glee and he did not think before grabbing her arm and flinging her away from his beloved. Marissa hit the floor, her head making sharp contact with the leg of the chair. Jareth failed to notice, his every thought on Sarah. Blisters were already forming on her face and she was making mewling noises of pain, her eyes unable to form tears, but showing all of her fear and pain. He held her to him as he transported them to the infirmary, shouting for Ades as they arrived in a puff of glitter and smoke.

The elf healer appeared within seconds and as he looked at Sarah, his face took on the sick expression that Jareth had seen there all to often since Marissa had arrived. It was with a measure of reluctance that the Goblin King laid Sarah in the same bed she had spent so many weeks in all those months ago. Now as he looked down at her, her face marred by the blisters and weeping burns, he felt cold fury fill him. All of this was down to his foolish, stubborn pride, allowing himself to be manipulated by a woman he should have sent home years ago. It was then that he remembered that he had left Marissa on the floor of his study, whether conscious or not was something that did not concern him. He summoned a crystal to his hand and looked deep into it. An image began to form as he focused on one particular creature.

"Estor!" He snapped to the captain of his personal guard. The large Higher Goblin shifted in his sleep, then Jareth saw him sit bolt upright.

"My King!" He sounded more than a little surprised and even through his anger, Jareth could understand it.

"Gather your men and have Queen Marissa taken into custody," he saw the goblin frown. "Place her in the oubliette next to the Bog, she should be in my study. If she resists, you have my permission to use force." The frown was replaced with surprise, but to Estor's credit he did not question his king's orders. Jareth turned back to Ades, who was examining Sarah with gentle fingers. Fortunately, Sarah had passed out when Jareth had transported them to the infirmary. "How is she?" He asked, his voice gentle.

"I need to clean these burns and bandage them, but they are beyond my ability to heal," Ades replied quietly, "they will scar." He looked shrewdly at the Goblin King. "I did hear of an incident where _you_ were able to heal some rather nasty burns, Your Majesty." He hinted. Jareth nodded and looked at the unconscious woman.

"The burns I healed were rather worse than those," he noted and Ades looked at him expectantly. Jareth hesitated for a moment. Healing Toya had been different, he had no fear of making anything worse, or causing the girl pain. This time it was more than different. This time it was his Sarah, the woman he loved and he feared that his intervention would cause her pain, he feared that he would make the burns worse. However, with Ades' eyes burning into the side of his face, and his fear at how Sarah would react if she awoke and he had not even tried to help her, he decided that he needed to take Ades' hint and attempt to heal Sarah.

He conjured another crystal, one that glowed with a golden light, and began to pass it carefully over her face. Slowly the weeping blisters began to vanish, the angry red began to fade and Sarah's face started to return to it's normal beauty. Ades laid a gentle hand on the King's arm, stopping him from completing the healing process, seeing the magic within Sarah beginning to fight the foreign power that caressed her.

"This last must heal naturally," he whispered, "you have taken the worst of the pain and the burns from her, she will not even scar, but you must leave some evidence for her family to see." Jareth glared at the healer, loathe to leave Sarah in any pain or with any form of disfigurement, how ever short lived it would be, then he nodded and the crystal vanished. He passed his hand over his weary face and sank into a chair that Ades had placed behind him as he had healed the woman he loved. He was exhausted, he had not slept in nearly two days and now he had all of this to deal with.

Ades watched his king for some time before he dared to speak.

"You should retire, My King, save this unpleasantness for the morning." Jareth glared at him and Ades knew that getting the King to leave would be nigh on impossible. "Of course, I will have one of the spare cots brought in here for you to sleep on, so that you will be here when she wakes." He added quickly and was rewarded with a nod of approval. As he scurried away to organise the moving of the bed, Estor marched in, coming to a rapid halt and salute, his face blanching under his pale fur when he saw the burns on Sarah's face, minor though they now were.

"What is it?" Jareth demanded, not liking the way the Higher Goblin was staring. Estor saluted again and looked at his King.

"The Queen has been detained and placed in the oubliette as ordered, Sire!" He reported. Jareth nodded once.

"Did she give you any trouble?"

"No, Sire, she was unconscious when we found her, but she woke when we arrived at the mouth of the oubliette. She is demanding to see you, My King." Jareth sighed and looked back at Sarah. He was in no mood to deal with Marissa, no mood to leave the sleeping woman on the bed, and not up to a confrontation of any sort. Let Marissa stay in the hole for the night, let her stew. He would not deal with her now.

"My thanks, Estor, I will deal with her when I have rested. She can stay there for the rest of time for all I care." He dismissed the guard with a wave of his hand and Estor saluted sharply as he made his exit, eyes resting on Sarah once more before he finally left as Ades' two assistants struggled over with the bed. Jareth looked at them, his mismatched eyes glowing in the dim light, then nodded his thanks, waited until they left and climbed onto the bed, lying on top of the sheets and turning so that he could watch Sarah as he drifted into sleep.

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When Sarah awoke the next morning her face was tight and painful enough to bring tears to her eyes. It took her a few moments to remember why and a few more moments to remember that she had been rescued.

"Jareth," she breathed the name of her savior, winced as even her lips hurt, and turned to look across from her where she could actually hear a mans soft breathing. The movement hurt and she suppressed a moan as she saw the shock of blonde hair. Jareth's face, he was looking towards her even though his eyes were closed, was so peaceful in sleep, relaxed in a way that seemed to take years off him, a place where the cares of his kingdom could not get to him. She risked a smile and mewled in pain as the dry, damaged skin cracked. At the sound, Jareth's eyes flew open and she saw him smile at her, then his eyes filled with concern and over the pain of her burnt skin she felt a new trickling, stinging pain. Her cracked cheeks were bleeding and she felt tears fall, adding another level to the torment she was already in.

"Oh, my Sarah," he whispered, desperate to touch her and not wanting to make things worse. "Ades!" He called and the elf healer was there in seconds. He looked at the woman in front of him, saw her anguish and turned to his king.

"There is little you can do here, Your Majesty, I suggest that you freshen up and complete the duties upon you from last night. I will care for Sarah and swear to you that I will call you when I am finished." Jareth glared at Ades, noted the pleading in Sarah's eyes and took her hand in his, kissing the back of it, though he longed to place a soft kiss on her lips.

"I will return later, My Love. Marissa needs to be dealt with." A single tear leaked out from Sarah's right eye, and without thinking Jareth brushed it away. Sarah flinched but did not cry out, telling him with her eyes what it hurt too much to try and say. Then he was gone and Sarah turned to Ades.

"Bring me a mirror," she muttered, barely moving her lips. "Please, Ades, please." The elf shook his head and moved to tend to her wounds. She pushed him away. "A mirror, Ades." She insisted, and the elf reluctantly gave in. He was gone only a matter of moments before returning with a small hand mirror, watching as Sarah looked at herself, deep, terrible pain in her eyes and the tears being held back by shear force of will alone. She stared for a few moments, transfixed, then flung the mirror away from her. It shattered on the stone floor and she simply shrugged and looked in front of her, avoiding Ades worried gaze as best she could.

"The King did his best, but he could not heal you all the way. I was forced to stop him, the damage it would cause you would have been irreparable. Your body needs to be able to heal on its own, and the magic you had absorbed from the last time he helped to heal you was beginning to fight. You will heal, with time, you will not even scar, he was able to do that much for you." Ades explained gently.

"Does he know?"

"No, it would destroy him to think that his own magic could cause you more harm than good." Sarah merely nodded and looked away as Ades began to tend to her face.

Though he knew the oubliette smelt worse that terrible, Jareth kept his expression neutral and his eyes hard. He would need all of his strength to keep from throttling Marissa as soon as he laid eyes on her. The temptation, of course, was to leave her in the oubliette and forget about her, continue his life with Sarah as though Marissa had never existed. Unfortunately, he did not have that option. Before he had come, he had called in the representatives of the High Council, he had decided that enough was enough. He would not keep Marissa locked away for three weeks and he most certainly would not allow her to run free either. He wanted her gone and he wanted it done now, before he did something that may start a war with the Fairy Kingdom.

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"_Jareth_!" He heard Marissa shriek from the other side of the dark hole and he called a crystal of light, suspending it above his head so that he could see her. Like the place she was now in, Marissa was covered in dirt, black and gooey lumps stuck to her clothes and skin. He suppressed a smirk, knowing that he had already pushed her almost over the edge.

"You screamed," he muttered and silently cursed Sarah as a bad influence.

"How dare you! How _dare_ you! Let me go! Release me from this, this, this..."

"Hole?" He suggested and this time he _did_ smirk. "Give me _one_ good reason why I should." He challenged. It took her only a second to reply and it was what he had known she would say.

"Because I am your _wife_! What other reason does there need to be?" Her voice rose.

"How is that a reason?" Jareth laughed coldly, his eyes flat and dangerous. "You are my wife in name only and are as pure as the day you were given over to me. Unless you have something you want to tell me." She did not miss the implications of his words and she fell silent, staring and suddenly afraid. "You will remain here until the Council arrives, they should be here in a couple of days. I _will_ end this, Marissa."

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Jareth washed before he returned to the infirmary, the scent of the bog tainted air clung to his clothes and hair and left him feeling more than a little nauseated. There was a reason why he never went into the Bog, though he doubted that many realised that the smell stayed with them for hours after. He could have used his magic to dry his hair, could have gone to her in his normal, perfect, smug way, but he did not. He wanted her to see him, as he was, is, has always been. He wanted to make her understand that he wants her in all the parts of his life. When he arrived, there had been no smile, no look of joy or happiness or completion on her face or in her eyes. There was only despair and pain, terror and worry and even though he did not want to acknowledge it, Jareth knew why. He could see the burns, shining under the healing creams, thick with magic and nature. He could see the way her hands clenched into the blankets stretched over her and how she turned to avoid his gaze. He did not care, she was alive and if she could not appreciate that, he would have to show her.

"Sarah," he whispered her name and still it sounded so much like the soft caress of a trembling hand over innocent skin, that she turned for the briefest of moments to look at him and he could see her heart in her eyes. He could sense the reason behind her fear and he was sat on the edge of the bed before a thought about self preservation could stop him. What he wanted to do was to touch her cheek and tell her that everything would be alright, he found himself with his hand halfway there before he had been able to stop himself and he saw the tears form in her eyes.

"Why are you here?" She asked, her lips barely moving, her eyes darting from him as she once again turned her face away.

"I would have thought that was obvious," he purred and took once too tense hand in his gloved ones.

"How can you even stand to look at me? I know that you can't bare to touch me!" The words were hissed with a measure of spite that he had almost expected, even though he noted that she had conveniently ignored the way that her hand was clinging to his.

"I don't want to put you in any more pain, Sarah. I love you, and I will love you no matter _how_ you appeared before me. If you were a troll with seven heads, I could not love you any more or less than I do now." He kept his voice quiet, not wanting anyone else in the room to hear his honest confession, but now amazed at how much lighter and easier he felt with her, now that he had told her the complete truth. Her only response was to turn her damaged face back to him, her eyes wide and incredulous. If he could have kissed her in that moment without causing her pain and injury, he would have done it and to Hades with the consequences. He settled for raising her hand to his lips and placing a long and lingering kiss there, not caring that he had not had a response to his honesty.

Sarah had allowed herself a moment of doubt before he had kissed her hand, the way his lips had seemed so desperate just to feel her there and she was upset when she realised that she could not find the words or the expression to tell him how deeply he had touched her and how much he was a part of her soul. She settled for returning the gesture, feeling the way her lips screamed at her as she did so and trying not to wince and ruin the moment. His smile was all she needed and she settled into the pillows, content to watch with a smile in her eyes.

"I've called for representatives of the council to come here as soon as they can." He told her quietly. "I'm pushing the divorce though before I do something truly foolish."

"Like what?" She whispered, suddenly more alert than she had been all day.

"Loose you," he shifted so that he could lie next to her on the cramped bed, resting one hand under his head as he laid the other on her stomach. She flinched a little as he came into contact with bruised flesh but did not complain. "Or kill Marissa and start a war, take your pick." He was rewarded with a flash of amusement in her eyes and he knew that she was trying not to smile by the way her lips were trembling. They lay in comfortable silence for a long while until a Torel breezed into the room. He looked at his King, lying with the woman he loved on the cramped little bed and smiled.

"The council has arrived, Sire," he informed Jareth and was rewarded by an angry glare. Then Jareth rose, kissed Sarah's hand again, looked at her in a way that said that he longed to do more, and lead his steward from the room.

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Jareth sipped his wine as he looked down the table at the six representatives of the Underground Council. Six other rulers who would now have a hand in deciding his future. It was this that he had dreaded for the last three hundred years, feared that they would not see Marissa for what she really was and accuse him of being a foolish and malicious child. To his right down the table sat Marissa's father, Tirith, the Fairy King, followed by Mestral, the MerKing and Solor, the Sun Lord. To Jareth's left was his uncle, Andros, Rilton's father, followed by Nemilia, the Unicorn Queen and Arelli, the Lady of the Moon. Each were opposites, Elf and Fairy long since opposed to each other for reasons lost beyond time, Unicorns and Merfolk never had been able to see eye to eye and the reasons for the enmity between Sun Lord and the Lady of the Moon never did really bare thinking about. Jareth just knew that this meeting would descend into petty bickering and back stabbing, at his expense, made all the worse that he had been given no time to prepare for their arrival, they had responded to his summons with unprecedented speed.

"Noble Majesties," he hated that part too, he was the Goblin King, guardian of the portals to the Above and the Unwanted. Of all of them, he should have been the most powerful. Instead they would shun him, calling him the Lord of Thieves, the Golden Tongued Trickster and a number of other, _less_ flattering names. He hoped for his sake that they would do the right thing and sent out a silent thanks to passing, minor deities, that Solor was among the group.

"We know why you have called us, Nephew," Andros told him, sending an unpleasant shiver through Jareth as he looked at the man that could have been Rilton's mirror image. "But you still have three weeks until you can officially apply to divorce Marissa, unless you have proof of infidelity," he leered, trying to catch Marissa's scent on Jareth and finding only anger. "Not that I would blame her." He added after that and was rewarded by glares from all others in attendance.

"Really, Andros," Nemilia muttered, her voice soft, like moonbeams and it reminded Jareth that she was strongly allied with Arelli. "Must you be crude every time we meet?" Solor laughed and Jareth gifted the gathered royals with one of his patented smirks.

"Must we always behave like children?" He asked, aware that such longevity as theirs usually resulted in some sort of mental regression at some point. "I wish to hasten my divorce, not because Marissa has been unfaithful, but rather because I begin to fear for the safety of the Taken."

"Begin?" Arelli questioned and he remembered that she had visited him on more than one occasion where Marissa's victim had been severely injured.

"Very well, I have feared for them for nearly three hundred years. However, yesterday night, Marissa attacked one of the maids, who has been under my personal protection since an incident nearly seven months ago, attacked her by pushing her face into a burning fire and holding her there, content to let the girl, and her own hands, burn in vengeance for some imagined insult. I can no longer tolerate her in my castle and my home." The other royals looked at him and he hoped that they would not make the undesirable connection between the incident seven months before and Sarah. They did not and he breathed a hidden sigh of relief.

"I find it hard to believe you could care so for a mortal slave over my daughter and her beauty." Tilith laughed, though no one at the table shared his mirth, many having a greater respect for life, mortal or not, than the Fairy King seemed to. Jareth clapped his hands and Marissa was brought in, wearing chains, and the filthy dress that she had been wearing the night before. Her burnt hands had not even been treated and they were covered in weeping blisters. Still, they were in better condition than Sarah's face had been when she had arrived in the infirmary and Jareth found that he was enjoying the obvious pain Marissa's hands were causing her. Tilith stood with an angry yell, his normally cool facade vanishing, Mestral frowned and leaned in to mutter to Solor who nodded and seemed about to speak when Tilith began to shout.

"What man would do this to his wife? To my daughter, a noble princess of the Underground?" Mestral chuckled darkly and it was Solor who prevented Jareth from having to reply.

"As I would treat such a whore," he flicked his brilliant red hair back over his shoulders and nodded to the Goblin King, a close friend and ally. "No matter how diplomatic my brother monarch has been, I can smell the other men on her." Marissa had seemed contrite and afraid when she had entered, now she let herself go.

"What else was I supposed to do? That impotent fool does not have it in himself to satisfy me!" She pointed a finger at Jareth, then fell silent as her father hushed her.

"You would reject the generous gift I gave you?" Tilith demanded instead. "Treat her as nothing more than a slave and expect her to cater to your every whim whilst the servants are treated better? No this I will not stand for! I withdraw my daughter from this marriage, one that has so obviously never been consummated, and I warn you, _Goblin King_, that I will be interrogating her most closely on your treatment of her."

"By all means," Jareth's smile was cold, but his eyes glittered with amusement.

"Be warned, if you have mistreated her in any other way, I will not hesitate to take you, and your pathetic realm, to task." With that the Fairy Queen and his daughter were gone. Jareth looked at the gathered royals and spread his hands helplessly.

"I apologise, if I had known that treating Marissa in that manner would have been all it would take to get Tilith to take her away, I would have done it years ago, and spared you the inconvenience of leaving your Kingdoms."

"It does not matter, My Friend," Solor assured him, "I am merely glad I got to see you rid of that hag." He nodded to the others. "Come my brothers and sisters, let us leave Jareth to his new found freedom. The others all vanished, but Solor stayed for a moment longer. "It's Sarah, isn't it?" He questioned laughed as Jareth scowled and crossed his arms over his chest. "do not worry, My Friend, your secret is safe with me for as long as you wish me to keep it." With one last chuckle, he too, vanished.

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Sarah's face healed rapidly, in part due to Ades constant ministrations and mostly due to the Fae magic she seemed to have absorbed from Jareth and Rilton. Soon it was clear to Jareth that she would return to her former beauty without a mark, physically, to show for her torture. He had spent as much time in the infirmary with her as he could each day, they talked easily and often he would read to her. One day, two weeks later, on his search for another book to read to her, aware that she had told him repeatedly that it was not necessary and delighting in this little thing that she would let him do, he continued and found a book that they had started seven months before and never finished.

"Guess what I found," he muttered in her ear after he had kissed her in greeting. Sarah had to admit that his kisses were something she would never tire of and the feel of his lips against her ear made her wish that she was no longer confined to the infirmary.

"What did you find?" She rose to the bait, he let one eyebrow drift up slightly and she scowled at him. He laughed at her and held up the book, Persuasion and he saw her lips part with a small gasp of surprise.

"We never did finish it, and I, for one, would like to see how it ends." She allowed him a small smile of encouragement and allowed herself to drift to the sound of his voice, simply content that he was there.

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Nearly a month after Marissa had left the castle, Sarah was released from the infirmary, her face completely healed and her heart full. She stood with Jareth by the window of his study, looking out at the now complete Goblin City, the new buildings gleaming in the light of the setting sun. behind them, the fire burned next to the remains of a simple meal for two, half a bottle of wine stood forgotten by the empty glasses. Jareth had his arms wrapped tightly around Sarah as she looked at the beauty that had been created from the complete destruction her actions had caused. She sighed and rested her cheek against his chest, enjoying the way the soft material of his shirt felt against her skin.

"You know," she mused, "despite everything that I've been through to get here. I wouldn't change a thing." Her voice was full of half sleep content and in that moment, Jareth understood.

"I would change a few things, Dearest," he kissed the top of her head and she made a small noise. "I would never have given you to Marissa..." she silenced him with a kiss.

"Change nothing. It was Marissa that made me realise how I feel for you." They stood together for some time, just enjoying the sunset, knowing that they had others to enjoy for the rest of their time, but that none would be so perfect as this first.

Fin.

_There, it's over. Done and dusted, there may be a sequel, I'm not sure, I haven't really got much of an idea for one and we all know that I have another fic to finish anyway. Of all of this I think I will miss Rilton most of all (even if his antics _did_ give me a migraine whilst I was writting this, which may be why it's a little weird) All comments are welcome and if I get anything which helps me to improve this last chapter, I will use it and give credit where credit is due. Please R&R, lets get me up to 400 reviews, guys!_

_Artemis_


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